Man United vs Tottenham Hotspur: Four things we learned | OneFootball

Manchester United battled back against the odds to secure a hard-fought point against Tottenham Hotspur courtesy of a last-minute equaliser from Matthijs de Ligt – and there was a lot to unpack from an intriguing 90 minutes in north London.

Ruben Amorim’s side led 1-0 for the majority of a tense affair at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. But two quick-fire goals from the Lilywhites looked to have stolen all three points in the final seven minutes of the match.

Down to ten men after Benjamin Sesko was forced off with injury – Amorim had used all five substitutes  at this point- United looked dead on their feet as Richarlison turned in a header in the 91st minute.

But United refused to roll over in a way they would have last season and they pushed forward in hunt of an equaliser. And De Ligt rose highest from a corner in the dying moments to make the score 2-2 and silence the stadium, outside of a raucous away end who had been singing Amorim’s name loudly from the first minute.

The full match report and a player ratings can be found here and here – but these are the four things The Peoples Person believe we learned from today’s match.

A Fluid Frontline or a Faulty One?

Amorim decided to drop Sesko to the bench with Amad joining the front three alongside Matheus Cunha and Mbeumo" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer">Bryan Mbeumo, with Noussair Mazraoui taking the Ivorian winger’s place at right wing-back.

It was a similar tactical choice to the one made against Liverpool last month, with Amorim appearing to believe a fluid forward line, comprised of technical players capable of interchanging positions and exchange possession at pace, a more effective line up than the powerful 6’5 Sesko provides.

And it paid off as all three combined for United’s opening goal – Cunha passing to Amad on the edge of the box and the 23-year-old crossing the ball in for Mbeumo to finish with superbly with his head.

The Spurs defence struggled for much of the first half to know which player to pick up as all three would rarely take up the same position twice. But where the first forty five minutes were a success, the second was not.

United lacked a focal point in the second half as Spurs grew into the game. Amorim recognised as such, sending for Sesko to offer more of a central presence up front. But it did not have the desired effect with the Slovenian looking off the pace as he struggled to adapt to the intensity of the match.

It’s an interesting conundrum for Amorim to contend with moving forward. United looked more fluid in the first half, yet they missed the brute force and directness of Sesko. But the young striker was unable to offer this from the bench as he was unable to grow into the game naturally in the second half.

Solving this dilemma will be key to how the remainder of United’s season unfolds. But it is a positive problem, rather than a negative one, as Amorim has different options to experiment with, rather than a lack of them.

The impact of AFCON

Not for the first time this season, Mbeumo and Amad were United’s best attackers – and it’s this combination which makes the looming presence of the African Cup of Nations such a precarious one for the Red Devils.

Both stars will depart in December – the tournament runs from December 21 until January 18 – with Cameroon (Mbeumo) and Ivory Coast (Amad) expected to progress deep into the tournament. Similarly, Mazraoui will leave to represent Morocco, who are considered the bookmaker’s favourites to win the tournament they are hosting as a country.

All three will be missed, but it is the decisive duo in the final third whose departures Amorim will be dreading come December. Today’s clash with Spurs will only have reinforced this view in the Portuguese tactician’s mind.

The Big Men for the Big Occasion

Once again, Amorim opted to start Harry Maguire at the centre of his three-man defence, with De Ligt shifting over to the right-hand side as Leny Yoro – who started the previous two matches – dropping to the bench.

The last match the head coach chose this defensive set-up was the trip to Anfield with Amorim pointing towards Maguire’s experience and leadership as his explanation for this decision – two attributes which also apply for De Ligt.

It seems Amorim is happy to use his big men on the big stage, despite preferring Yoro’s profile as a centre-back, given the French starlet’s speed and technical ability. Expect to see both Maguire and De Ligt start in hostile away grounds, while Yoro steps back in at Old Trafford.

Fight Until the Final Whistle

For the fourth game in a row, United scored a decisive goal in the final period of the match to clinch a result.

Against Liverpool, Maguire scored in the 84th minute to secure all three points. Mbeumo rifled home in the 97th minute versus Brighton to stave off a late comeback by the Seagulls and Amad did the same against Forest last weekend to rescue a point.

It was a similar story this afternoon – with De Ligt rising high to power home a superb header in the final seconds of the game, despite United being forced down to ten men after Sesko’s injury.

Last season, United would not have won any of those matches. Yes, there is still fragility in key moments, but the fact that Amorim’s men were able to fight back in each moment – to either claim all three points or rescue a draw – is progress.

The next step is eliminating the need to do so; but to be capable of that level of resilience and ‘never say die’ attitude is a testament to Amorim’s influence over a dressing room who were defined by their tendency to capitulate when the going got tough.

The result leaves United 7th in the table but only a point off second, though the rest of this weekend’s fixtures are yet to be played. They are next in action after the international break against Everton at Old Trafford on November 24, but there was a lot to be positive about today.

Featured image Alex Pantling via Getty Images

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The Peoples Person has been one of the world’s leading Man United news sites for over a decade. Follow us on Bluesky: @peoplesperson.bsky.social