Manchester United 1-2 Tottenham - Player Ratings and David Moyes Interview

After showing hopes of a comeback in recent weeks, Manchester United suffered yet another home defeat against Tottenham. Here is how players from both fronts fared during the game.

Manchester United

David De Gea: 6/10

He made a smart save with his legs in the first half to deny Aaron Lennon after he had been played in behind the defense by Roberto Soldado. However, he was helpless for both of the goals that Spurs scored.

Chris Smalling: 5.5/10

He had a glorious chance to open the scoring midway through the first half after being set up by Valencia but he shot straight at Lloris. He was caught out by Eriksen’s cross and failed to challenge Adebayor for the first Spurs goal.

Jonny Evans: 6.5/10

He seems to be developing a solid partnership with Vidic and looked to get involved in the buildup quite a few times, even getting into the box on a couple of occasions. He defended solidly against Soldado but was beaten too easily by Lennon in the buildup for the Spurs’ second.

Nemanja Vidic: 7/10

He looked dominant in the air and hardly gave any joy to the Spurs strikers in aerial duels, and made crucial interceptions. However, he couldn’t cut out Lennon’s cross for Spurs’ second goal after he was caught flat-footed at right-back, and then he failed to capitalize on a couple of chances to score late in the game.

Patrice Evra: 5/10

His lack of pace was exploited time and again by Lennon down the right hand side, and was guilty of ball-watching multiple time, allowing players to get in behind him. He failed to put any sort of pressure on Eriksen when he was crossing for Adebayor’s goal.

Antonio Valencia: 5.5/10

He looked average on the right hand side. His final ball, however, was erratic all game, and he failed to pick out team mates even when in really good positions. He was caught out for the Spurs’ second when he failed to track the run of Eriksen.

Michael Carrick: 6.5/10

He was the orchestrator of most of the plays in the first half, and was looking to pull the strings from deep. At times, he looked to be playing a little too deep, and failed to break open the Spurs defense. He was subbed off in the second half.

Tom Cleverley: 6/10

He showed plenty of energy to roam around the entire pitch, but the powerful Dembele seemed to have the better of him. Despite all his energy, the final product seemed missing, and went missing from the game in most of the second half.

Adnan Januzaj: 7/10

The youngster looked to make things happen whenever he got in the ball, be it on the right or the left, with his skill and willingness to run at defenders. He played in Danny Welbeck for United’s only goal of the game with a superb pass.

Wayne Rooney: 6.5/10

Rooney appeared slightly off the pace following his hurried return after a groin injury. However, he played some delightful cross-field balls and was full of running for the entire game. United would have preferred him to play closer to the box in order to hurt Spurs, and he picked up a silly yellow card for a needless tug on Dembele in the first half.

Danny Welbeck: 7.5/10

The young striker has been in good form of late and continued his scoring run with a well taken goal in the second half. His movement was lively throughout the game, and he looked to make runs behind the defense every chance he got.

Subs

Javier Hernandez: 5.5/10

He looked lively after replacing Michael Carrick on the hour mark, but was let down by his touch in the box a couple of times.

Shinji Kagawa: 5.5/10

The Japanese midfielder failed to influence the game in the half hour he was on the pitch after replacing Smalling. The closest he came to making an impact when he came close to turning in a Januzaj cross.

Ashley Young: 5/10

He came on with less than ten minutes to go, and did not have sufficient time to make an impact. He had a late shout for a penalty turned down after he was taken out in the box by Lloris.

 

Tottenham Hotspur

Hugo Lloris: 6.5/10

He made a smart save with his legs in the first half to deny Smaling, and with the defense playing a high line, he looked to play as a sweeper. He managed to make a few crucial interceptions, but was almost caught out on a couple of occasions, including the late appeal for a penalty.

Kyle Walker: 6.5/10

He rarely got the chance to get forward, but he had a decent game against Januzaj. He often had to use his pace to keep up with the tricky Belgian, and kept his attacking instincts curbed in what was a disciplined performance.

Michael Dawson: 7/10

He did have some shaky moments initially and it looked as if he would be troubled by the pace of Welbeck, but he grew into the game and made some good interceptions and was commanding in the air.

Vlad Chiriches: 6/10

Just like his central defensive partner, he made some good interceptions and was good in the air, but his positioning looked suspect all game as he was caught out by balls played in behind him, with one such ball resulting in United’s goal.

Danny Rose: 5.5/10

He had a terrible first half, and was outfoxed by Valencia whenever he went up against him. He failed to prevent Valencia from crossing, but in the second half, his positioning improved and the United winger had considerably less joy against him.

Aaron Lennon: 7/10

The England winger got the better of Evra time and again, and looked to exploit his lack of pace whenever he got the chance. He, however, should have opened the scoring after he had been superbly set up by Soldado in the first half, when he failed to beat De Gea from close range.

Etienne Capoue: 6/10

He was preferred to Paulinho due to the defensive cover he provides, and that meant that Paulinho’s late runs were missing as Capoue was happy to sit back just infront of his defense. His passing was sloppy at times, and he gave the ball away far too often, and was replaced after the hour mark by Bentaleb.

Moussa Dembele: 6.5/10

The Belgian had a poor start to the game but he got better as the game wore on. He had the better of Cleverley for most of the game, and looked to run with the ball, skipping past challenges with his superb dribbling ability.

Christian Eriksen: 8.5/10 (Man of the match)

Probably AVB’s job could have been safe if this guy was not injured. His his passing was good throughout. He showed his quality with an assist and a goal, first setting up Adebayor with a left-footed cross from the right before scoring from close range with a sharp header. Man of the match.

Roberto Soldado: 6/10

The Spaniard seems to be going through a goal drought and failed yet again to score from open play when he failed to make decent contact with a good cross from the right, slicing the ball over. However, he did set up Lennon with a delightful pass in the first half.

Emmanuel Adebayor: 8/10

The change of manager at Spurs seems to have rejuvenated the Togolese striker, and he found the net yet again with a superb guided header in the first half. His first touch was poor at times, but he constantly looked to get involved in the linkup play. He was forced off in a stretcher in the 70thminute, and will undoubtedly be a big miss for Spurs.

Subs

Nacer Chadli: 5.5/10

He came on for the injured Adebayor and made a few decent runs.

Nabil Bentaleb: 6/10

The youngster got his chance to get some game time after replacing Capoue after the hour mark. His passing was neat and tidy, and he continued to press hard in the last half hour.

Harry Kane: 5/10

He came on with fifteen minutes to go, and he worked hard and harried the defenders late in the game. He looked to holdup the ball, and was a decent outlet.