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In truth, those game changing substitutions should not have been left on the bench either, as Thomas Frank got his starting lineup selection all wrong. You know it's a mistake when you see Richarlison and Brennan Johnson on the team sheet on either flank, with Djed Spence being the one behind Richy at the left back position.

Tottenham were plodding and anemic for much of the game, but the inclusions of young wingers Wilson Odobert and Mathys Tel were the jolts Spurs needed to play respectable football again. Tel and Odobert have been highly promising this season despite the criticism, and although Thomas Frank may already be figuring out that Odobert is a difference maker, he still seems slow to recognize Tel's quality.

Thomas Frank already snubbed him badly

Frank already snubbed Tel by leaving him off his Champions League squad, and although Tel fought his way back to produce key moments, such as a great day in a win over Leeds before the October international fixtures, he's remained on the periphery.

Well, Tel changed the game again, scoring out of nowhere on Saturday against Manchester United to show that he has more goal threat than either Richarlison or Randal Kolo Muani. At this point, 'it's hard to argue against Tel being the striker when his work against Leeds and Man United has been far beyond what his competition have been capable of at the No. 9 spot recently.

Tel is yet another young Tottenham player who is being discarded by Frank, and yet is honestly one of the best options for the starting lineup. He has his flaws, and in an ideal world, Spurs would have a better player to start at striker.

Tottenham Hotspur manager Thomas Frank once again hooked Xavi Simons off the pitch early in the game, and even though Spurs ended up doing better in the scoreboard without the Dutchman, there is no question in the minds of fans that Simons was basically scaepgoated by the coach.

Simons has had a rough start to life at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium since moving from RB Leipzig to Spurs this summer, and rival fanbases are having a field day with his lack of goal contributions. Arsenal fans are laughing because Spurs went after their big playmaking signing Eberechi Eze first. Meanwhile, Chelsea fans are going after Spurs here because they were the ones who were very close to signing Simons before Spurs got more serious and swooped in.

But Simons hasn't been the problem or even bad at all. He was great against Copenhagen, for example, and while he has still not been up to snuff yet as he adjusts to the actual Premier League, it's hard to fault him for what happened out there against Manchester United.

That's all on Thomas Frank. Although Frank has done a great job as Spurs coach thus far and honestly has too many haters at this point, he does deserve a fair bit of constructive criticism, too, and no player has been burned more by the new coach than the new attacking midfielder.

Thomas Frank gave Xavi Simons nothing to work with

Simons had nowhere to go with the ball against Manchester United, and that's not a new complaint either. Time and time again, Simons gets the ball in a sea of opposition jerseys, clamped down with no time or space or options to pass.

It's not like the players around him are making themselves available either. For example, Tottenham started Richarlison and Brennan Johnson on either flank for Simons to play off of in transition, and, well, that's basically like being all on your own, because Johnson and Richy are horrendous all around and are in the midst of seasons in which they are playing themselves out of the team entirely.

Everyone knows Tottenham Hotspur need to inject more attacking talent into their squad in the 2026 transfer windows, either winter or summer - or even both. Spurs tried their best to upgrade their attacking options this past summer for new coach Thomas Frank, signing young gems Xavi Simons and Mohammed Kudus before springing a deadline day loan deal for PSG striker Randal Kolo Muani.

So far, Kudus has been a revelation on that right wing for Tottenham, while Simons and Kolo Muani have been assets for Spurs overall. But Tottenham still need more after already missing out on Manchester City winger Savinho before the deadline closed.

The thing is, Tottenham are starting to realize that they have holes elsewhere in the squad that were not addressed in the summer transfer window, even beyond the attack. Briefly, Spurs thought about signing a left back as cover for Destiny Udogie, with Napoli's Mathias Olivera among the names on their wishlist.

Tottenham didn't end up signing anyone, but 11 games into the fresh Premier League season, it's pretty clear that Spurs are going to have to sign a quality left back before long. Djed Spence simply is not cutting it as cover for Udogie, whose injury issues these last few weeks have been a bigger blow to Tottenham's overall team than they would have otherwise anticipated.

Tottenham's cover is not good enough

Spence is a right back, not a left back, and Tottenham have pretended for far too long that the England international is a viable option on that side of the formation. When Spence starts for Udogie, the entire Tottenham attack falls apart, because the left flank becomes a complete non factor. And that puts far too much strain on a young left winger to then do the job of two men.

Simply put, no matter how you try to dress it up, Spence isn't good enough to play meaningful minutes for Tottenham on that left flank. At best, he is right back cover for Pedro Porro. At worst, Udogie gets hurt yet again and then Spurs have to start Spence on the left flank, and if they are going up against a good enough team, it's basically like being a man down.

Tottenham won't have too many options to work with on the transfer market, because good left backs are highly coveted. But if Spurs can find a proven veteran who can actually play the position with a respectable left foot, then that's enough to be a substantial upgrade on Spence.

Any sliver of injury news is bound to be met with pessimism by Tottenham Hotspur supporters, because over the last few years, no team has been hit harder by bad injury luck than the Lilywhites. They were absolutely ravaged under Ange Postecoglou, and even though his playing style was pinned as the main issue, the luck hasn't gotten much better under a more pragmatic Thomas Frank.

Against Manchester United on Saturday afternoon at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, the Lilywhites had to hook Randal Kolo Muani at the half after the striker took a blow to the jaw. He should be fine, but he will need scans on Sunday to confirm the extent of the injury.

Meanwhile, Spurs supporters were even more concerned about Cristian Romero. The superstar center back is the team's best overall player, and if there were any doubts about him being the most important, those were answered quite emphatically by just how poorly Spurs were without him in the starting lineup.

That's because Romero had just recovered from an injury, so when fans saw him getting subbed out of the game late for third center back Kevin Danso, alarm bells immediately rang in their heads. Any potential for an injury to Romero would be devastating, especially with Spurs struggling to put away mediocre opposition like Manchester United.

Thomas Frank gives his assessment

The good news is that Romero doesn't appear to be injured and may have just been taken out of the Man United game as a precaution. Tottenham manager Thomas Frank told reporters after Spurs 2-2 draw that Cristian Romero is "fine", via The Spurs Express.

Tottenham fans will obviously stay tuned for any changes in Romero's status or any more concrete updates from Frank, but that sound is the collective sigh of relief of the entire fanbase. Romero is vital to not only how Tottenham defend, but also how they possess the ball, build play up, maintain their shape, and even how they drive forward to start attacks.

Tottenham Hotspur were seconds away from jubilation and a come from behind victory against Manchester United at home on Matchday 11 of the 2025/26 Premier League season, but they ended up leaving Matthijs de Ligt unmarked at the death despite having a man advantage due to Benjamin Sesko's injury.

Richarlison ended up scoring the winning goal by virtue of a fortunate flick off a brilliant Wilson Odobert effort, but many Spurs supporters felt he should not have even been on the pitch at that point in the game.

After a disasterclass in the Champions League despite Spurs winning 4-0 over Copenhagen, Richy drew the start on the left wing and was predictably terrible. Yet at the half, it was striker Randal Kolo Muani who got hooked off instead of Richarlison, and that had Spurs fans ready to riot. Richarlison may have saved his day with that goal, but no true Spurs fan will be fooled by that performance.

But the bigger concern right now is Kolo Muani. As it turns out, Thomas Frank had a very legitimate reason for substituting the promising French striker, as Kolo Muani actually suffered an injury and had to be taken out of the game.

Tottenham man may be injured

According to top French journalist Fabrice Hawkins of RMC Sport, Randal Kolo Muani suffered a blow to his jaw during Tottenham's game against Manchester United and needed to be taken off at the half for that reason. He will now underdo scans on Sunday to determine if he has an injury or not.

The good news is that Hawkins says Tottenham aren't currently concerned about Kolo Muani's status, so they don't believe he is injured. Blows to the jaw or any part of the head can be serious, but if a player isn't obviously hurt, it's not as concerning, as, say, a knee or hamstring injury.

That said, Kolo Muani was hurt enough to necessitate being substituted, and Tottenham fans know better than to count on lady luck. Expecting the worse has become par for the course for Spurs supporters at this point, and with various forwards, including star man Mohammed Kudus, already injured, Spurs fans will wait with baited breath until they actually hear words of 100 percent clearance for Kolo Muani after the scans. Going forward, he is going to be the guy at striker until Dominic Solanke finally comes back, because Richarlison's fluke goal won't save his job.

GK Guglielmo Vicario

It is getting difficult to talk about Vicario because we are generally allowing so few shots at the moment, and he is dealing with through balls well. Today, however, he conceded both times United had chances. The first could be argued either way whether he should have come for the ball to help his defenders or should have saved the header. For the second he should have done better. It wasn’t the strongest of headers and again he was rooted to his line. Not the best from Vicario today, and he will likely be a lot busier in our next game.  Rating: 4

RB Pedro Porro

Delivery was poor today, particularly from corners. Porro also seemed to lose his bearing for Mbeumo’s goal although from his positioning it isn’t clear he could have got there anyway. Generally provided decent support with both attacking and defending but at critical times, it didn’t go Porro’s way today.  Rating: 5

LB Djed Spence

Defended well when needed. Spence covered a lot of ground, including both flanks to stop United breaks. Had one miskick in the first half where he misjudged the ball but thankfully was able to recover. Couldn’t get much success going forward, which we should see more of. No longer think of him as a right back playing out of position, which is credit to his performances for a while now.   Rating: 7

CB Christian Romero

Defended with his usual consistency and, like the rest of the side, rarely looked worried by United’s attacks. Had our first real chance of the game from a cross and, although he forced a decent save, Romero could have attacked the ball with more than just a flick. It was a better chance to score than it initially seemed. Rating: 8

CB Micky van de Ven

Did not run the length of the field to score a goal today, which we surely must be expecting every game from now on. On the more realistic side, Micky generally looked assured as usual, however just like last week he was involved in overplaying to gift the opening goal. Those tight situations are ones where we need to clear. Did make an excellent recovery tackle late on to stop a chance. Would have liked to have seen more from the late corner with de Light being the obvious United target at that point. Â Rating: 6

CM João Palhinha

Tackled well as always, and his positioning provided a good shield in front of the defenders. Palhinha didn’t get the ball forward quickly enough today, which partly is explained by the lack of movement in front of him. Had a good game off the ball but could have provided more drive and urgency when in possession. Bentancur was able to do this to a greater effect when he came on. Rating: 6

CM Pape Matar Sarr

Sarr’s inclusion in the starting lineup seemed like a good choice for his energy against Man United’s more static midfield. It worked to an extent but not as much as hoped. Sarr started well and was getting forward but seemed a bit more subdued for a large part of the game. Was also at fault when overplaying for the important first goal. Did get forward again more towards the end of the game but generally wasn’t the best performance we will see from Sarr.  Rating: 5

RW Brennan Johnson

Johnson helped his full back well and was involved in the attack more than in previous games but final ball or decision making often meant it broke down. Is a good finisher and had a goal disallowed for offside in the second half. This is probably Johnson’s best position for us, and can never rule out a goal from him, but he needs creative players around him. His strength is running into space, anticipating the pass, and finishing. Today we seemed to want him to take players on and create which did not bring success.  Rating: 4

AM Xavi Simons

Continued his improvement and looked the player who was at least playing with his head up and trying to create. Held the ball well though often found himself surrounded by opposition players with no support. Xavi will benefit from starting with Kudus when he returns. Has ability and hopefully seems to be adjusting the Premier League. Rating: 7

LW Richarlison

Had a difficult afternoon again. Continued to struggle to hold the ball up and play others into the game, which is a consistent problem. Defenders won most of the challenges with him again. Missed a great header early in the game, which should have been 1-0, then scored what looked to be the winner late on. Wasn’t to be 3 points, but great for him to get a much-needed goal. Rating: 5

CF Randal Kolo Muani

 Was not in the game, barely touched the ball, and was subbed at half time. There was a lack of involvement from the front players in general, so that didn’t help, but this was a game where we could have got at the United defenders a lot more. Muani looks stronger running with the ball than with his back to goal and would probably be more effective wide. Rating: 2

Substitutes: Kevin Danso, Mathys Tel, Destiny Udogie, Wilson Odobert, Rodrigo Bentancur

Tottenham Hotspur didn't beat Manchester United, and while that will sting a little bit after watching Matthijs de Ligt bury another back post header to sink Spurs comeback hopes, the reality is that Spurs should be happy they even got a point out of this game on the back of how they actually performed.

Spurs started the game with a lineup that put them in a position to lose, and fans couldn't help but feel their eyes burn when they watched the left sided axis of Djed Spence and Richarlison bumble about the pitch. Thomas Frank's decision to hook Randal Kolo Muani off instead of Richy came with some derision after continued incompetence from the Brazilian international, though he did end up redeeming himself with a fluky, decisive goal.

But it was really the shot that Richarlison deflected, which may have gone in anyway, that was worth writing home about. It was from a young player who stepped in to the position on the left and significantly upgraded the team, producing another quietly fine performance to establish himself as a key figure in the rotation.

Tottenham were putrid, as anyone would expect, with Spence starting at left back and Richarlison trying to salvage his Spurs career on the left wing (instead of striker). They were reborn when the actual best options at those positions, Destiny Udogie and Odobert, were introduced into the game.

Destiny Udogie is a nailed-on starter

It's a mistake Frank will hopefully make for the last time, and if he has any sense at all, it will be the last time Spence is trotted out there over Udogie. Maybe Frank didn't think Udogie was 100 percent ready for a full 90 minutes, because that's the only valid excuse for starting Spence, who is legitimately one of the worst starters in the entire Premier League because of how overrated he is defensively and how objectionally poor he is at the most important job of the left back, which is progressing the ball forward.

Odobert, meanwhlie, is a less obvious inclusion than Udogie, but there's no real alternative on the left wing. Mathys Tel came off the bench and scored, too, but the jury is still out on his fit as a left winger vs. a striker. And regardless, Odobert has been the best wide creator on that left flank and the only real option to navigate the right spaces and produce chances.

Tottenham are first up in the Premier League this weekend, as they welcome Manchester United to N17 in Saturday's early fixture.

Thomas Frank may well enter the dressing room ahead of kick-off and deliver a "Lads, it's Man Utd"-like speech to his players, given the success the Lilywhites had against the Red Devils last season. The fourth and most significant of their victories resulted in a 17-year wait for silverware drawing to a close.

However, it was Ange Postecoglou, not Frank, who often took the Red Devils for walks. The new Spurs boss is still searching for a statement win on home soil, having blown the opportunity last weekend against Chelsea.

At least the 4-0 battering of Copenhagen means the Lilywhites are entering Saturday's game in high spirits.

But so are Ruben Amorim's side. While 'The United Strand’s' wait for a haircut continues after United's three-game winning run was snapped by Nottingham Forest last weekend, the Red Devils are undoubtedly improving thanks to a stripped-back approach predicated on direct play.

These two sides are currently level on points in the Premier League table.

Here's our preview of Saturday's lunchtime clash.

Tottenham vs Man Utd: Preview, Prediction & Lineups

What time does Tottenham vs Man Utd kick off?

Tottenham vs Man Utd kicks off on Saturday 8 November at 12:30 BST.

When is kick off? Saturday 8 November, 2025

What time is kick off? 12:30 BST

Where is it played? Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London

Referee:Â Sam Barrott

Tottenham vs Man Utd head-to-head record (last five games)

How to watch Tottenham vs Man Utd on TV & live stream

Tottenham team news

Mohammed Kudus is confident that he'll be fit for the weekend's game, having missed the Copenhagen win with a knock. However, the Ghanaian wasn't spotted in training on Thursday, so he's facing a race against time to declare himself available.

Cristian Romero and Destiny Udogie were back in the starting XI on Tuesday after recovering from their respective setbacks. They'll retain their places in Spurs' defence alongside Pedro Porro and Micky van de Ven.

The injury list otherwise remains unchanged, with Frank hopeful that Dominic Solanke will return to action after the international break.

João Palhinha will return to Spurs' midfield, and Frank could sacrifice Rodrigo Bentancur, whom, despite his standout performance in midweek, seemingly cannot work in tandem with the Portuguese international. Lucas Bergvall's concussion means Pape Matar Sarr should remain in the engine room.

Tottenham predicted lineup vs Man Utd:Â Vicario; Porro, Romero, Van de Ven, Udogie; Palhinha, Palhinha, Sarr; Kudus, Simons, Odobert; Kolo Muani.

Man Utd team news

United's reduced load this season has helped them out massively on the injury front, and the visitors are only without long-term absentee Lisandro Martínez this weekend.

A more direct approach has worked with and without a recognised No. 9, and it'll be interesting to see whether Amorim opts to use Benjamin Šeško as his focal point here. He's started back-to-back games, but Mason Mount has impressed when called upon this term.

Casemiro will partner Bruno Fernandes in midfield, while Frank will have to gameplan for his former star at Brentford, Bryan Mbeumo. Amad is developing a potent connection with the Cameroonian international down the right flank.

Patrick Dorgu could replace Diogo Dalot at left wing-back.

Man Utd predicted lineup vs Tottenham: Lammens; Yoro, De Ligt, Shaw; Amad, Casemiro, Fernandes, Dorgu; Mbeumo, Cunha; Šeško.

Tottenham vs Man Utd score prediction

United's midweek rests are paying dividends, and subtle changes in tack from Amorim means they're in a far better place than they ever have been under his tutelage.

Thus, the visitors, despite being held last weekend, will be confident of returning to winning ways and likely in a vengeful mood. However, their flaws without the ball means Spurs are unlikely to encounter the issues they did against Chelsea.

I'm expecting a gritty and bitty affair to kick-off the weekend, with a game of fine margins failing to return a victor.

Even though he started the season on a bit of a hot streak, Richarlison quickly came crashing back down to earth, and Tottenham Hotspur have not recovered an even remotely competent version of the Brazilian forward since.

It's been disasterclass after disasterclass from the former Everton star, as Richarlison continues to boggle the mind and make Spurs supporters question why on earth the club spent 60 million pounds, which was then a transfer record, for the forward.

The last straw may have been his performance in the Champions League against Copenhagen, because even though Spurs won comfortably 4-0 (despite a red card from forward Brennan Johnson, too), Richarlison somehow managed to distinguish himself for all the wrong reasons.

He missed chance after chance, operated on a totally individualistic wavelength separate from his more useful teammates, and even seemed to undermine the young Dane Scarlett, including taking - and missing - a penalty from the homegrown product.

There is no room for Richarlison

Therefore, Scarlett should be upgraded ahead of Richarlison in the Tottenham striker pecking order, which clearly has Randal Kolo Muani at the top and will have Dominic Solanke right behind him whenever the England international is finally ready to return from his foot injury.

There is simply and obviously no room for the thoroughly underwhelming Richarlison, who is offering nothing of use to the team. Meanwhile, Scarlett is young and has upside, and he's the kind of productive, hard-working striker who can carve out a niche rotational role and potentially be something for this team, whereas Richarlison is nothing more than fodder for the Turkish, United States, or Saudi Arabian leagues next summer.

It's time for Tottenham to continue their divestment from giving minutes to Richarlison and instead siphon a few of those opportunities to Scarlett before it's too late and Solanke comes in to take even more of those opportunities off the table.

Several Tottenham fans have been wanting to see the club give Scarlett more opportunities this season, especially under Thomas Frank, and Richarlison may have helped grant that wish on Tuesday night against Copenhagen by playing so poorly, which aided in highlighting Scarlett's own promising cameo.

Nobody should pretend that Scarlett is going to be world-class or should be recognized as a high end striker prospect, but, again, he has shown that he has more to offer to Tottenham than someone who continually wastes opportunities and holds the rest of the front line back.

Tottenham Hotspur are trying to build a younger squad that can dominate the next decade, and, as part of that, they made a trio of signings this past summer with a gear towards the future. Spurs signed Mathys Tel permanently from Bayern Munich after a promising six month loan, and then they bagged two of Europe's most talented ascending attackers in Mohammed Kudus and Xavi Simons.

But if you ask most Tottenham supporters, the best signing of the future that Tottenham made was the year before in Swedish center midfielder Lucas Bergvall, who started to break out at the end of the 2024/25 season and ended up playing a crucial role on the road to Spurs winning the Europa League title (well, before his injury cut his season short and prevented him from directly contributing against Manchester United in the end).

Bergvall hasn't been able to get as many minutes this season, which has frustrated Spurs fans since new manager Thomas Frank really should be giving him more starts than the less dynamic and talented Rodrigo Bentancur.

But that hasn't stopped Bergvall from getting widespread acknowledgment that he is a special talent. The CIES Football Observatory recently released their valuations of teenage talents in world football, and they valued him at 68 million euros, nearly seven times more than what Spurs originally paid for him.

A Tottenham star in the top 10

Not only that, but Bergvall is the 10th most valuable teenager in the world overall, valued just a handful of millions behind Real Madrid star forward Endrick, who cost the Merengues a lot more than Bergvall cost Tottenham and was originally hyped up as the next big thing in world football.

Now, Tottenham fans won't like that Bergvall is valued by CIES behind Arsenal's Myles Lewis-Skelly, but when you consider the players at the top of the list are phenoms like Pau Cubarsi, Lamine Yamal, Estevao Willian, and Franco Mastantuono, you really have to say that Bergvall is in a great spot and amongst iconic company.

Bergvall could be valued even higher and doing even more if Frank weren't holding him back a little bit. As it stands, Bergvall is just about as valuable as Endrick, and given what he has accomplished for Tottenham lately, it wouldn't be out of the question for Spurs fans to argue with CIES that their spots should be flipped. But being right behind Endrick isn't a shameful spot at all, especially when you consider that forwards usually go for more money than midfielders anyway.