Tottenham Hotspur Stadium is the venue as Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United go head-to-head in a mouth-watering Premier League showdown on Saturday.
Spurs’ life without Harry Kane was off to an enthralling start as they shared the spoils with cross-city rivals Brentford in a goal-glutted 2-2 draw on the opening weekend.
As pinpointed in our Tottenham season preview, Kane’s goal-scoring record was paramount to the London outfit over the years, but they showed they can pack a punch without their former talisman.
New manager Ange Postecoglou wasn’t pleased with his side’s defensive showing on his touchline debut as Spurs stare down the barrel of a two-game winless start to a new Premier League season for the first time since 2015/16.
Man United’s upcoming visit to the capital fits that narrative, with the Red Devils going unbeaten in all four top-flight encounters against Tottenham at their new stadium (W2, D2).
Erik ten Hag’s team opened the new season with a hard-earned 1-0 win over perennial bottom-half strugglers Wolverhampton Wanderers at Old Trafford, raising concerns over their title credentials.
United faced a staggering 23 shots on goal in their curtain-raising fixture, with only Arsenal producing more attempts against them during Ten Hag’s regime.
We named the visitors as potential candidates for a runner-up finish in our Man United season preview, and this game should put our predictions to the test.
Match Preview
Tottenham blew hot and cold in their final four home league outings towards the end of the 2022/23 campaign (W1, D1, L2), conceding multiple goals on three occasions.
Postecoglou failed to stem the bleeding in his maiden Premier League game as a manager, casting doubt on Spurs’ chances of defying a woeful spell of form against Man Utd.
Except for a historic 6-1 triumph at Old Trafford in October 2020, they have gone winless in eight of their last nine league clashes against the Red Devils (D2, L6).
No matter the outcome, this promises to be a high-scoring contest, as Spurs’ Premier League matches last term featured a league-high average of 3.5 goals, a theme that highlighted their day-one game at Brentford.
Man United’s opening-day triumph extended their winning league streak to five fixtures, but it’s worth noting only one victory in this sequence came away from home.
Ten Hag’s side notoriously struggled on their Premier League travels last term, picking up a league-lowest one point against fellow top-nine clubs on hostile turf (D1, L7).
United’s travel sickness saw 76% of their league goals conceded arrive away from Old Trafford (33/43), with 28 of those 33 goals coming against sides to have finished in the upper half of the table.
Considering they’ve only managed one shutout on their last four league visits to Tottenham, their proneness to conceding on high-profile road trips gains more weight.
Team News
Postecoglou will be without long-term absentee Rodrigo Bentancur. Bryan Gil and Ryan Sessegnon are also out while the Australian still sweats over the fitness of Cristian Romero.
The Argentine defender suffered a knock against Brentford, joining last season’s Serie A winner Tanguy Ndombele on the list of doubts.
Man United may have to wait a while longer to see marquee summer signing Rasmus Hojlund in action, with Tyler Malacia and third-choice goalkeeper Tom Heaton keeping him company in the treatment room.
United released an update on Mason Greenwood’s future on Wednesday, but the troubled youngster’s future at Old Trafford remains uncertain. He won’t be part of the travelling squad.
Tottenham Hotspur potential starting line-up:
(4-2-3-1): Guglielmo Vicario; Destiny Udogie, Micky van de Ven, Christian Romero, Emerson Royal; Yves Bissouma, Oliver Skipp; Heung-min Son, James Maddison, Dejan Kulusevski; Richarlison.
Manchester United potential starting line-up:
(4-2-3-1): Andre Onana; Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Raphael Varane, Lisandro Martinez, Luke Shaw; Casemiro, Mason Mount; Antony, Bruno Fernandes, Jadon Sancho; Marcus Rashford.
We Say: Tottenham Hotspur 2-1 Manchester United
Based on what we saw from both teams on the opening weekend, we believe Tottenham are in a decent position to upset the odds and arrest a five-game winless run against Man Utd (D1, L4).
