Spurs star Rodrigo Bentancur sent off in Man Utd draw
Old Trafford descended into chaos on Saturday evening as substitute Rodrigo Bentancur was sent off for thrusting his head into Luke Shaw during a touchline melee in Tottenham’s 1-1 draw with Manchester United.
Roberto De Zerbi’s side managed to snatch a dramatic late point through Dominic Solanke’s stoppage-time header despite playing out the final minutes with ten men.
The afternoon had looked set to deliver a much-needed victory for Michael Carrick’s side when Bryan Mbeumo turned sharply inside the box to fire United into a second-half lead.
Bentancur loses his head on the touchline
The match exploded late in the second half when Bentancur clashed with Shaw on the sideline, sparking a furious brawl between both sets of players and coaching staff.
The Uruguayan midfielder was shown a straight red card after making head contact with the England full-back during the altercation.
Lisandro Martinez stepped in as peacemaker to restrain his international team-mate, but the damage was already done as Tottenham were reduced to ten men while trailing 1-1.
Speaking on Sky Sports after the final whistle, pundit Jamie Redknapp was scathing about the home team’s display:
“There was a lot of good things in this Tottenham performance tonight. They were much better than United in every department but that is just a theme this whole season.”
Redknapp went on to voice deep concerns over the depth and quality available at Old Trafford under Carrick:
“I look at the United team and look at the squad, I find it hard to get a team that is going to compete week in, week out. They are just not strong enough.”
Solanke completes late rescue act
Despite their numerical disadvantage, Tottenham continued to push forward against a hesitant home defence that struggled to control the contest.
Sandro Tonali whipped a deep cross into the penalty area, allowing Solanke to outmuscle Martinez and nod the ball past Senne Lammens in the 93rd minute.
The strike marked Solanke’s fourth Premier League goal against Manchester United, leaving Carrick’s side with just six points from their opening six league fixtures.
Reflecting on the match with Sky Sports, opening goalscorer Bryan Mbeumo expressed his disappointment at dropping two points from a winning position:
“We took time to get into the game, but we played well in the second half.”
Mbeumo admitted the squad had to drastically raise their standards following a sluggish opening 45 minutes from the hosts:
“In the first half, that wasn’t us, we had to change. We tried to get at them.”
Pressure mounts on stuttering Red Devils
The result leaves United stranded in 12th place in the Premier League table, having secured just a single victory in the competition since August.
Carrick had called for his side to show more aggression in the build-up, but United managed only 37 per cent possession during a dismal first half.
Spurs lifted themselves off the bottom of the table up to 18th position with the point, though De Zerbi remains searching for his first league win of the campaign.
What’s next
Tottenham now travel to Marbella for a warm-weather training camp during their break, while Manchester United must quickly address their lingering lack of spark before returning to Premier League action.
