Friday night saw Jose Mourinho face off against his former club, Manchester United. With both sides sitting just outside of the top 4, both sides needed to win in order to maintain their European ambitions. The game finished 1-1, meaning neither side grasped the opportunity to jump considerably up the table.
BEST PLAYER - HUGO LLORIS
Following injury and numerous unenforced errors (such as dropping the ball on the goal-line against Brighton), many had feared that the World Cup winning captain’s days as Spurs’ number 1 were numbered. However, Lloris silenced his critics with a stellar performance. Excluding the penalty, Lloris faced 6 shots on target, amounting to 1.01 xG. Despite superb efforts from Rashford and Martial, Lloris acrobatically saved every shot, playing a vital role in ensuring that his side only conceded once and thus, walked away with a point.
WORST PLAYER - DAVID DE GEA
It is undeniable that David De Gea’s performances have deteriorated since 2017/18; no goalkeeper has made more errors leading to goals since the start of last season. Yesterday’s game was no different as De Gea fumbled a shot from Steven Bergwijn that was only expected to go in 8 times out of 100 (.08xG). Whilst this was only one mistake, it was pivotal. Once in the lead, Mourinho was able to ‘park the bus’, making it incredibly difficult for United to break down Spurs’ stubborn defence and get back into the game.
UNDERRATED PLAYER - PAUL POGBA
Since his return to the Premier League, Paul Pogba has divided opinions. However, it is undeniable that, on his day, Pogba is unplayable. This was shown once again as Pogba ran the game despite only playing 27 minutes. Pogba effectively won the ball back for his teammates, winning 4 duels (the 3rd most), before then progressing his side up the pitch, completing 3 dribbles (out of 3) and 95% of his 19 passes, including 3 long balls. The icing on the cake then came in the 80th minute as Pogba danced his way into the penalty area before winning a penalty that was later converted. There’s no doubt that United would have struggled to rescue a point without the elegant yet powerful Frenchman’s appearance.
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