The final act of the Premier League weekend comes from north London on Sunday when Tottenham Hotspur welcome Manchester United.
Both Ange Postecoglou and Ruben Amorim are under the spotlight but, for the Aussie, he can at least point to an impressive record against the Red Devils.
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- Tottenham to win – 11/8
- Dejan Kulusevski to score first – 21/2
- Bet Builder: Over 3.5 Goals, Over 9.5 Corners & Lucas Bergvall to be booked – was 19/2 – now 12/1
Spurs presenting Red Devils with problems
Chinks of light for Ange Postecoglou are becoming harder to see through the gloom that has become Tottenham’s season but a visit from Manchester United could provide some sort of tonic.
A generation of Red Devils supporters dined out on the mantra that their side had few fears against the Lilywhites, with Sir Alex Ferguson famously quoted as telling his squad ‘Lads, it’s Tottenham’ at the height of his success.
Wins over United were a rarity then but now Spurs find themselves unbeaten in five meetings head-to-heads, with the Londoners scoring 13 goals in that run.
Only three managers have ever remained unbeaten in their first four Premier League games against the Red Devils, with Postecoglou aiming to join Ruud Gullit, Nuno Espirito Santo and Unai Emery in doing so.
Destiny Udogie, James Maddison and Brennan Johnson are all in contention to return for Spurs, while Mathys Tel will look to build after scoring his first goal for his new side in the FA Cup loss at Aston Villa.
If Spurs can get their high-octane game going, and restrict the lapses in concentration, they can continue their recent stranglehold on this fixture.
Since Amorim took charge in November, only five sides have picked up fewer points in the Premier League than his Red Devils, who could be headed for an eighth league defeat in 14 games under the Portuguese.
Kulusevski can hurt visitors
This is the third meeting between the sides this season and Spurs have won both, scoring seven times across the league win at Old Trafford and a Carabao Cup success here.
Dejan Kulusevski netted in both games and the Swede could break the deadlock on Sunday.
Dominic Solanke and Richarlison are set to miss out, while Brennan Johnson is close to returning but may settle for a place on the bench.
If that duo miss out, Kulusevski, with 38 efforts, becomes Tottenham’s second highest shot-taker in the Premier League this season. He has six league goals already and is on course to top his personal-best tally of eight.
Bergvall bound for a caution amid the excitement
Only Wolves (87) have seen more goals in their 24 Premier League games than Tottenham with 85.
The Lilywhites have scored at least twice in each of their last four Premier League games against Man United, while they hit four in their League Cup win here in December as they edged it 4-3.
Since the Boxing Day defeat at Wolves, United have scored six times in four away games and they have scored multiple goals in five of their last eight away from Old Trafford. Spurs should afford them plenty of scoring chances.
United had eight corners in the December defeat at this venue and a similar contribution can help ensure the corner count is in double figures against a home team averaging 7.5 flag-kicks per game of their own in the league this season.
Teenager Lucas Bergvall was booked in last month’s League Cup win over Liverpool – he was perhaps fortunate not to be sent off later in that contest before scoring the winner – and the young Swede has picked up three more cautions in his last seven outings.
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