NBC Sports

Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim is again dealing with the losing end of a Premier League match after his misfiring attack was blanked 1-0 by Tottenham Hotspur in North London on Sunday.

The Red Devils remain embroiled in the mess that is the bottom-half of the Premier League, and there are few players or staffers who should be pleased with their first-half levels in going behind to their London hosts.

MORE — Recap, analysis from Spurs 1-0 Man United

The second half was much better as captain Bruno Fernandes — a force over the entirety of the match — did his best to inspire chance after chance without finish from a sputtering group of forwards.

It was one moment from an opportunistic, rebound-hunting James Maddison that sent the Red Devils to a third loss in four Premier League matches, as United is 2W-1D-6L in the league since December 22.

Here’s how the Man United manager saw it.

Ruben Amorim reaction — How did Manchester United manager react to loss at Tottenham Hotspur?

Many missed chances? “The difference of the game was they scored, we didd’t score. We had our opportunities to score. At the end of the first half we pushed a little bit harder. We had the situations. We suffered some transitions because we were trying to get results but in the end they scored and we didn’t.”

On all the absences for this game: “It doesn’t matter. It’s in the past. We want to recover players. We can recover some for the next game. From this moment until the end of the season it’s going to be like that. So we have to be together, to finish the season, and start over.”

Has he ever had a bench as young as this in his career? “At my former club I had it but it’s completely different because this is the hardest competition in the world and [Sporting Lisbon] are playing in one competition that is not too strong. So I’m trying to be careful with [the young players}. They will play. You try to read the game and understand what you’re seeing in training. I felt our team was pushing for the goal. I didn’t feel the need to make changes.”

Concerned about his status? “I’m not worried, again. Of course I understand our friends and what people in media think about it. I just want to finish the league strong. I’m not worried about me. I’m worried about the club, I’m worried about the team, the players. So for me it’s the same — I just hate to lose. The feeling is the worst thing. The rest I’m not worried about. I want to help my players, the young kids in this moment.”

“I’m just focused on helping my players. I understand my situation and my job so I never worry about that. I’m really confident in my work and I just want to win games. The place in the table is my worry, I’m not worried about me.”

Ruben Amorim post-game interview (video)

LONDON — Tottenham Hotspur beat Manchester United 1-0 on Sunday in a game which was dubbed by me many “the Europa League favorites derby” and a tense game highlighted the flaws of both teams.

James Maddison’s first half goal was the difference as Spurs soaked up plenty of pressure in the second half and were thankful both Alejandro Garnacho and Joshua Zirkzee missed big chances.

Ange Postecoglou’s side have now won back-to-back Premier League games for the first time since September.

Meanwhile Ruben Amorim has won just nine of his 21 games in all competitions in charge of United and have just two wins in their last nine in the Premier League.

Below is a look at what we learned as Tottenham Hotspur beat Manchester United in a clash between Premier League underachieving giants.

Bergvall, Maddison bring the quality Angeball needs

To play Angeball at its very best you need to have the ball and Spurs duo Maddison and Bergvall are so good on it and keeping it. They dictated the tempo in the first half and with ageing stars Casemiro and Bruno Fernandes United’s only fit midfielders left, Bergvall and Maddison ran rings around them. When your entire style of play is built on winning the ball back as quickly as possible to attack, you need players who can then keep it and sustain attacks and create some magic. Sarr and Bissouma are good at winning it back but not the best at keeping it and having two cool-headed central midfielders to calm things down and speed things up gives Spurs more control in games. Both came off in the second half with Sarr and Bissouma on for more defensive solidity but it was noticeable how Spurs struggled to keep any control late on. That was because Bergvall and Maddison weren’t around to control things and that duo are key moving forward.

Hojlund continues to struggle as wastefulness highlights Amad’s absence

Rasmus Hojlund looked like a striker who has scored just two times in 19 Premier league appearances this season. The Danish forward is lacking in confidence and that will happen when midfielders are played ahead of you up top, which has happened a lot recently. Others around Hojlund were better, with Alejandro Garnacho and Joshua Zirkzee showing some nice touches and dangerous on the counter. But both wasted huge chances, Garnacho in the first half and Zirkzee in the second. That highlighted the brutal absence of Amad Diallo, who announced on Saturday he has suffered an ankle injury which will keep him out for some time. If the 22-year-old winger was on the pitch at Spurs he would have surely buried one of those big chances. United are missing their top goal contributor in the Premier League (six goals, six assists) and it showed. Bruno Fernandes did his best to get United going in attack but they have lost eight of their last 12 Premier League games and never looked like they believed they could get an equalizer.

Spurs now have a chance to build some momentum

With players like Maddison, Guglielmo Vicario, Brennan Johnson and Wilson Odobert back from injury, plus new signings Mathys Tel and Kevin Danso obviously going to play a key part for the rest of the season, Spurs’ squad now looks so much stronger. Others are close to returning soon too and this win gives Spurs a platform to build from and for some momentum to arrive as they’ve finally secured consecutive PL wins for the first time in five months. They head to Ipswich then host Manchester City and Bournemouth before playing away at Fulham before the international break in March. If they can get through that run of games with three wins, that’s a great return and will likely see them back in the top half of the table. Amid all of that will be their Europa League last 16 clash and all of these players are returning for a key moment in their season. Spurs still have a long way to go but this is a good starting point.

Tottenham Hotspur will be happy to collect all three points at home, but perhaps even happier at the top-to-bottom performance of their unit in a 1-0 win over Manchester United in North London.

The visitors have a lot less to like and will be ruing its attacking output despite a spell-binding display from playmaker Bruno Fernandes.

How will Ruben Amorim and Ange Postecoglou see it? We’ll soon find out, but here’s how we judged the players of Spurs and Man United in a scrappy 1-0 affair at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Tottenham Hotspur player ratings vs Manchester United

Guglielmo Vicario: 8— Two solid early second-half saves on Garnacho, and so excellent with his feet. Gave a late reminder of his indecisiveness with balls in the air.

Pedro Porro: 7 — Never stopped buzzing through the wide areas and dealt well with a busy Garnacho.

Ben Davies: 7 — Piled up touches and played a tidy game, getting stuck into the physical game without reservation.

Kevin Danso (Off 78'): 7 — Led Spurs in defensive actions.

Djed Spence: 7.5 — Spurs did so well in the wide areas and Spence was leading the game in touches well into the game.

Rodrigo Bentancur (Off 78'): 6.5 — Passed the ball well but lacked match sharpness at times.

Lucas Bergvall (Off 64': 6 — Read the game well but weak in the duel (0-for-6 with two fouls).

James Maddison (Off 64'): 8.5 — Good follow-up to open the scoring, but it was his passing touch and interest in his own end that impressed the most.

Heung-min Son: 6.5 — Created four chances but it still missing his confidence and/or ambition as a finisher.

Dejan Kulusevski: 5.5 — Wanted to affect the game but was denied many times on the dribble.

Mathys Tel: 6.5 — Ripped off six shot attempts as only Maddison, who buried a high xG chance, accounted for more expected goals in the match.

Subs:

Brennan Johnson (On 64'): N/A

Pape Sarr (On 64'): 7 — Nearly set up a second Spurs goal late in the game.

Archie Gray (On 78'): N/A

Yves Bissouma (On 78'): N/A

Manchester United player ratings vs Tottenham Hotspur

Andre Onana: 8 — Couple of big first-half saves including the stop before Maddison deposited the rebound. A hard-luck loser, Onana led the game in recoveries with 10.

Noussair Mazraoui: 6.5 — At the center of everything and passed the ball well (46-of-48)

Matthijs De Ligt: 7 — Only Casemiro (15) had more defensive actions than the Dutch back’s 14.

Harry Maguire: 6 — A typical Maguire day. Passed well, no big gaffes, but a step slow overall.

Patrick Dorgu: 6.5 — Strong in the tackle but limited going forward.

Casemiro (Off 90+1'): 6.5 — His lack of speed is always going to be exposed but the Brazilian is still a canny operator who draws fouls and plays a physical game.

Bruno Fernandes: 9 — Did everything but score as his elite long-range passing was again denied end product by an absent United forward corps.

Diogo Dalot: 6.5 — Industrious out wide but wayward with his crosses.

Alejandro Garnacho: 6.5 — Lively as always but the finishing was not up to par. Butchered a glorious chance to equalize in the 23rd minute, skying the ball well over the goal.

Joshua Zirkzee: 6.5 — Came within a yard or two of turning Mazraoui’s 71st minute cross inside the far post. Good, decisive hold-up play.

Rasmus Hojlund: 5 — There’s no confidence in or coming out of the big center forward, who is struggling to impact games more often than not. Twenty-two touches in 90 minutes and a horrible 1-for-9 record in duels.

For once, Ange Postecoglou’s Tottenham Hotspur were the healthier of two Premier League combatants, and he won’t be surprised that it led to a 1-0 Spurs win.

Manchester United were down several players while Spurs returned a few including star goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario.

James Maddison, Djed Spence, and Pedro Porro all shone for Spurs, who have consecutive Premier League wins after a run of seven matches that produced just one point.

Spurs go from 15th to 12th, leaving their Sunday visitors in 15th in a match where one ailing giant was bound to take advantage of the other.

Ange Postecoglou reaction — How did Tottenham Hotspur manager react to

We’ll have Postecoglou’s post-match words as soon as he speaks, right here.

Can Man United get past Spurs without Diallo?  NBC Sports

Amid a season full of disappointing defeats for Tottenham Hotspur, there has at least been one small joy for Ange Postecoglou’s side: playing Manchester United.

WATCH LIVE – Tottenham Hotspur vs Manchester United

As they prepare to meet for the third time this season on Sunday (11:30 am ET), both sides find themselves stuck in an historically bad moment of their club’s history. With 13 Premier League defeats already (and 14 games still to play), Spurs (14th - 27 points) are barreling toward the club’s worst season since 2003-04 when they lost 19 times and finished 14th. And things aren’t any better for Manchester United (13th - 29 points), who have finally bottomed out (maybe) after years of slowly sinking as a result of numerous regrettable managerial hires and player signings. The Red Devils were also on the wrong end of Spurs’ best results of the season — 3-0 in the PL in September, and 4-3 in the League Cup quarterfinals — serving as Dr. Manchester United, for the notorious “Dr. Tottenham.”

Spurs’ injury crisis appears to be relenting at long last and as many as six players could make their long-awaited returns from injury this weekend. Chief among them are Micky van de Ven, Guglielmo Vicario and Brennan Johnson, but any combination of the six will give Postecoglou new options to change the game in the second half, rather than simply trying to finish each game with 11 healthy players on the field. Ruben Amorim doesn’t have an injury crisis to point to as the main reason for his side’s poor results since he took over back in November (4W-2D-7L in the PL, and 9W-3D-8L in all competitions), with few, if any, signs of improvement in nearly three months.

How to watch Tottenham Hotspur vs Manchester United live, stream link and start time

Kick off time: 11:30 am ET Sunday (February 16)

Venue: Tottenham Hotspur Stadium — London

TV Channel: Peacock

Streaming: Premier League on Peacock

Tottenham Hotspur team news, focus

OUT: Richarlison (lower leg), Radu Dragusin (ACL), Dominic Solanke (knee - MORE), Wilson Odobert (thigh), Cristian Romero (quad) | QUESTIONABLE: Micky van de Ven (fitness), James Maddison (undisclosed), Destiny Udogie (thigh), Guglielmo Vicario (fractured ankle - MORE), Timo Werner (thigh), Brennan Johnson (calf)

Manchester United team news, focus

OUT: Mason Mount (thigh), Luke Shaw (foot), Jonny Evans (muscular), Lisandro Martinez (knee), Altay Bayindir (other)

Tottenham Hotspur vs Manchester United prediction

Expect more chaos in Spurs v. Man United clash  NBC Sports

Usually we are talking about Tottenham Hotspur vs Manchester United as a clash between top four hopefuls, but this is all about 13th place.

That’s right. 13th.

WATCH — Tottenham Hotspur v Manchester United

Ange Postecoglou’s Spurs have been ravaged by injuries all season, while Ruben Amorim is still only a few months into his time in charge of United but there’s been no consistency as the Red Devils’ rollercoaster ride continues.

Below we look at the Tottenham Hotspur vs Manchester United odds and give a prediction for how the game will play out on Sunday in north London.

Tottenham Hotspur vs Manchester United odds

(Betting odds provided by our partner, BetMGM) BetMGM is our Official Sports Betting Partner and we may receive compensation if you place a bet on BetMGM for the first time after clicking our links.

Kickoff: 11:30am ET, Sunday (February 16)

Odds: (+140) Tottenham Hotspur vs Manchester United (+170) | Draw (+270)

TV Channel/Stream: Peacock

Tottenham Hotspur vs Manchester United prediction

Ange Postecoglou watched on shaking his head for most of the game as Tottenham Hotspur lost at Aston Villa in the fourth round of the FA Cup.

The hits just keep on coming for Spurs, but Postecoglou credited his small group of fit players for doing an “unbelievable job” over the last two and a half months to keep playing as injuries have piled up.

After losing 4-0 at Liverpool on Thursday as they were knocked out of the League Cup at the semifinal stage, Spurs were outplayed by Villa for vast swathes of the game and the 2-1 scoreline flattered them.

Here’s the latest Ange Postecoglou reaction as Tottenham’s fans were far from happy with the performance.

Ange Postecoglou reaction

“Disappointed we don’t progress. It wasn’t a great start,” Postecoglou told the BBC. “It’s the last thing you want. That sort of gave them some momentum going into the 45 minutes and we really struggled to get some control. We also had an enormous chance at 1-0 to equalize. Second half we had to open up a little bit which allowed them some opportunities on the counter but at the same time I thought we got a better grip of the game and unfortunately fell short. When you go a goal down it gives the opposition some momentum and confidence and we struggled then to get a grip on the game. Ideally you want to try and wrestle control really early and we didn’t do that.”

What was his message to Spurs’ players at half time, as they improved in the second half?

“We are still in the game. As disappointing as the first half was I said ‘we are only 1-0 down and had a big chance to make it 1-1.’ We just needed to hang in there and the second half was a lot more like ourselves and the second goal made it a bit more difficult for us but I always felt we were a threat going the other way but unfortunately not enough.”

Postecoglou then gave an impassioned speech about how this small squad of players have done an incredible job to hang in there over the last few months as so many injuries have hit Spurs.

“Nothing really changes. We’ve got a couple of weeks now where we don’t have midweek games. This group of players has done an unbelievable job for two and a half months. Unbelievable job,” Postecoglou said. “Can’t praise them highly enough for the effort they’ve put in. A really small group of players playing twice a week since the middle of November. They’ll get some opportunity to recover now. We’ll get some players back over the next couple of weeks and look forward to resetting and finishing the season strong... Europe is still very important to us and we are in a great spot there. We expect to get some players back over the next two weeks which is the most important thing because it gives a bit of a respite for the group that have been doing it for the last two and a half months.”

Postecoglou admitted that only having a small group of players to deal with such a heavy fixture list over the last few months has taken a big toll on them.

“Of course it does. You can see that. They are just going out there giving everything they can. But obviously it would be a lot better for them if we had some help,” Postecoglou said. “We will get some players back, which will help. We had 11 first team players out today. Take that out of any team for one game and they’ll struggle. We’ve been doing it for two and a half months. We’ll get some players back and it will help.”

Marcus Rashford could make his Aston Villa debut versus Tottenham Hotspur when Premier League big boys clash in the FA Cup fourth round on Sunday.

The Manchester United loanee is one of several new faces for Villa, who added Marco Asensio, Donyell Malen, Axel Disasi, and Andres Garcia during the January window.

Spurs have also added in January, and there was even more urgency given their status in the top-fllght. Goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky has been thrown into the deep end, while Kevin Danso and Mathys Tel have also taken their Spurs bows.

Tottenham are languishing in the bottom half of the Premier League while Villa are into the Champions League final 16, but both sides know what an FA Cup run can do for a season.

How to watch Aston Villa vs Tottenham Hotspur live, stream link and start time

Kick off time: 12:30pm ET Sunday

Venue: Villa Park — Aston

TV Channel/Streaming:ESPN+

Aston Villa team news, focus

OUT: Tyrone Mings (knee), Pau Torres (ankle), Matty Cash (muscular) | QUESTIONABLE: Ollie Watkins (groin), Ross Barkley (calf)

Tottenham Hotspur team news, focus

OUT: Richarlison (lower leg), Radu Dragusin (ACL), Dominic Solanke (knee - MORE), Brennan Johnson (calf), Destiny Udogie (thigh), Guglielmo Vicario (fractured ankle - MORE), Wilson Odobert (thigh), Timo Werner (thigh), Cristian Romero (quad), James Maddison (undisclosed)| QUESTIONABLE: Micky van de Ven (fitness)

Aston Villa vs Tottenham Hotspur prediction