Last updated & checked: 10/08/2021
Both of these Premier League heavyweights have been underperforming in one way or another. More obviously is Manchester United, whose form has been so unpredictable this season that there’s been rumours of a change in management from Ole Gunnar Solskjær.
It is understandable – Manchester United have only won 9 points in their last 10 games, with their 2-2 draw against Aston Villa nudging them closer to that bottom half of the league table. However, it doesn’t look likely that they will actually see a replacement in leadership in part, we are sure, due to their far greater success in the Europa League.
Spurs don’t have quite the same level of concerns in terms of standings. They remain in a very respectable fifth place, but their defensive troubles have caused palpable tension. These are two teams with clear flaws, but bags of talent.
Manchester United vs Tottenham Hotspur Prediction: Man United 1-2 Spurs
With Tottenham’s heavy attack style and Manchester United no doubt sensing big opportunities in that fractured defence, we think we could be in for an absolute barnburner of a contest here. Nonetheless, we’re going to have to go with Tottenham to win because they just seem to be progressing at a more rapid rate. Mourinho hasn’t quite turned around their defensive flaws yet, but he has had a positive impact on several areas of play. United, on the other hand, seem to still be stuck without a clear direction forward. Still, we’re expecting an action-packed 90 minutes, meaning our scoreline prediction is 2-1 toSpurs.
Our recommended tip: Both teams score
We think that Manchester United are likely to get dragged into Tottenham’s game of high risk high reward. The chance to take out a big team and gain some momentum may just be too tempting not too. Considering this, we think both teams scoring seems likely. In fact, if we have to guess whether we would see more or less goals than our scoreline prediction, we’d say more. Keep in mind, the last time Tottenham failed to score was 10 games ago. If you agree, you can get some generous 13/20 odds from MarathonBet.
Previous matches
There’s one heck of a history here, as these two have met over 200 times beginning over a century ago. In case you were curious, that 1899 encounter ended when Spurs drew with what then was known as Newton Heath. That may have been a draw but Manchester United have pulled forward over the years, nearly doubling the winning percentage of Tottenham. Still, it’s no secret Manchester United haven’t quite matched past glories this season. The more recent games show a much more balanced set of results. In fact, each has won four of their last eight matches. Slight historical edge to United, but one we think will have little bearing here.
Top 3 Premier League Bookies
Players to watch: Marcus Rashford & Dele Alli
Manchester United: Marcus Rashford
Throughout all the difficulties and the doubts that have followed Manchester United this season, there has been one constant they have been able to rely on virtually without fail. That is the form of Marcus Rashford. He’s been absolutely astounding this season and has shone even when the legendary team’s light seemed to have dimmed. Against a talent like Tottenham, they’ll be happy to have him to rely on once more.
Tottenham Hotspur: Dele Alli
In a way, the person everyone’s watching isn’t even on the field, as many are still giving Mourinho’s managerial talents most of the attention to see his steady influence. However, considering this is players to watch, we’re going to go with the man who we think has benefited most from the changes already made and that’s Dele Alli. We could clearly see this from his brilliant outing against Bournemouth.