Tottenham Hotspur vs Manchester United. International Champions Cup.
Hongkou Stadium.
Eric Bailly injured early in the second half for Manchester United as Tanguy Ndombele made his first Spurs start
Thursday 25 July 2019 18:52, UK
Manchester United maintained their perfect pre-season record as a superb Angel Gomes goal gave them a 2-1 win against Tottenham in the International Champions Cup.
In a feisty first half, Anthony Martial put United ahead in the 21st minute with a hard drive that beat Paolo Gazzaniga at the near post. Moussa Sissoko then appeared to stamp on Daniel James during a challenge, but did not receive a booking.
Both sides made wholesale changes at the break - with United changing their entire XI - and Tottenham got a deserved equaliser in the 65th minute as Lucas Moura's shot was deflected into the back of the net.
But Gomes (80) snatched the victory with his first senior goal for the club, sneaking a shot in off the far post after some wonderful play to seal a fourth successive pre-season win for United.
Both sides went close in the opening 10 minutes. Martial hammered the post after some superb work from James in midfield to set him up, before Dele Alli forced David de Gea into a low, fingertip save not long after.
United then started to dominate and got their reward in the 21st minute in a goal that Tottenham goalkeeper Paolo Gazzaniga will not want to see back. Andreas Pereira threaded a wonderful ball through for Martial, who tracked wide before hitting a low, hard shot. Gazzaniga looked poised to save at the near post, but it zipped past him and into the back of the net.
Four minutes later, and the already hot temperatures in Shanghai rose even further on the field. The impressive James had been the recipient of a few Tottenham tackles, with Sissoko going into the back of him on this occasion. He then got his foot tangled with the body of James and appeared to twice stamp on the 21-year-old. It sparked a confrontation between the two sets of players, but there was no booking for the midfielder.
United changed their entire XI at the break, but were dealt a blow after 10 minutes when Eric Bailly was stretchered off with an injury. He slipped while trying to track the run of Heung-Min Son through the area, and was replaced by Axel Tuanzebe.
Spurs had begun the half well and got a deserved equaliser in the 65th minute, although it did have a helping hand on the way through. Son played a Tuanzebe clearance into the path of Moura, who swept the ball goalwards. But it took a big deflection to beat Sergio Romero as United conceded their first pre-season goal.
There were a few half chances for both sides as the game went on, and it took a moment of brilliance from 18-year-old Gomes to seal United's victory. He played a lovely give-and-go with Juan Mata before bursting towards the byline. He then snuck the ball across the face of goal and past Gazzaniga before it nestled into the back of the net via the post.
Thursday's game was another chance for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer to blood his youngsters, who have been mightily impressive in pre-season so far and it is safe to say that James was the star - or at least the focus - of the first half.
He was a menace for United in attack, bombing towards the box at any given opportunity and thoroughly frustrating the Tottenham defence. He was the target of a number of fouls and was stamped on by Sissoko, which should really have been a sending off. At one point, Spurs even tried to double up on him but the wily 21-year-old continued to find his way through.
A word must also go to the 18-year-old match-winner, Gomes. His first senior United goal showed superb vision and finishing, with great belief in his own ability to make the shot while Marcus Rashford was waiting on the line. He had two other great chances in the half and could find himself more involved in the first team this season.
He told MUTV after the game: "I got a bit of stick, a few academy players have scored and I hadn't so it was good to score in the last game.
"I can't describe it [the goal]. I've seen it back now, I went and celebrated with the fans. Hopefully the first of many"
Speaking after the game, Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino said: "I was a little bit annoyed about some situations. I was not happy. It was a friendly game and in some situations of course when you are tired, when it's so hot, you are not right with the tempo to arrive at the actions, sometimes you arrive late and something can happen.
"I apologise on behalf of our players to Manchester United, I think in the second half they made it to us, but then it's football. I was a little bit worried, but in the second half, the game was a bit more relaxed."
Man Utd manager Solskjaer added: "Dan is so quick and it's not easy to time tackles against him. I can understand why players mistime tackles against him and he's a brave little boy and he jumps.
"He's taken a few knocks over the tour but, as an old man, I like to see tackles. There's no rolling about, or diving [with James]. If he stays down he's injured but he gets up when he's just hurt. There's a difference between being hurt and injured."
Tanguy Ndombele made his first start for Tottenham in Shanghai, but he was arguably used in the wrong half, although no one could have predicted that.
Manchester United dominated the first half, which meant Spurs had little chance to get forward and Ndombele could not really show what he can do, but he did show flashes at each end of the half.
In the third minute, he dinked into the area before being fouled by Chris Smalling to send him sprawling. 38 minutes later, he played some neat football with Troy Parrott before almost being fed through by Harry Kane, but Scott McTominay marked him well. He also made a good clearance at point-blank range in the 13th minute, showing a glimpse of his defensive abilities.
After the break, Spurs were much more free in their attacking play and it would have suited Ndombele's game more, but he will now have to wait another 10 days before he can show Spurs fans why he cost £65m.
Tottenham have one more friendly against Inter Milan on Sunday 4 August - six days before their Premier League campaign gets underway against Aston Villa, live on Sky Sports.
United face Norwegian side Kristiansund BK on Tuesday before taking on AC Milan in Cardiff on Saturday 3 August. They will also play their first Premier League game on Sky Sports, hosting Chelsea on Sunday 11 August.
