Tottenham Hotspur vs Manchester United: 3 Talking Points as United edge past Spurs
With less than two weeks to go for the forthcoming season and pre-season well underway, Manchester United took on Tottenham Hotspur in Shanghai in an International Champions Cup fixture hoping to continue their rich vein of form.
In a tightly-contested encounter, Manchester United got the better of their opponents and won by a scoreline of 2-1. Anthony Martial's opener was cancelled out by Lucas Moura's second-half strike before academy starlet Angel Gomes scored a fantastic winner late in the second half.
Tanguy Ndombele made his full debut for Spurs after sealing his record-breaking move to North-London this summer and the Frenchman enjoyed a decent outing, getting valuable minutes under his belt.
As two English teams vying for a spot at the of the table went up against each other, the game didn't lack the competitive edge, which is often the case in most pre-season friendlies as Manchester United eventually ran out 2-1 winners.
On that note, let's look at some of the talking points from the game.
#1 - Anthony Martial's impressive outing
After blowing hot and cold in recent games, Anthony Martial had his best outing this pre-season against a quality side like Spurs.
Starting as a No. 9 with Mason Greenwood and Daniel James either side of him, the 23-year-old was the standout player as Manchester United went into the break with a 1-0 lead.
Having hit the post early on after being played in by James, Martial continued to grow in stature as the game went on and capped off a fine display with a well-taken goal, beating Paulo Gazzaniga at the near post.
The Frenchman staked his claim for a starting spot with an assured performance as he spearheaded the Red Devils' attack and aside from his goal, Martial's off-the-ball movement and relentless pressing will come as a massive boost as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer attempts to implement his philosophy at the club.