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Manchester United host Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League this weekend. United started the campaign well with 19 points from seven games but are struggling to maintain the momentum as they have managed just one point from their last two outings. Meanwhile, Tottenham are gaining momentum after a rough start as they thumped Liverpool 4-1 last week.
A win will take Spurs to the second place in the table behind Manchester City while Manchester United will lose further ground with a defeat. United are still without their world record signing Paul Pogba while Eric Bailly and Phil Jones may return. For Spurs, the fitness of Harry Kane is a huge concern for Mauricio Pochettino.
Let's look at the 5 factors that will decide the result of this tie:
#5 Struggling United attack vs a solid Spurs defence
Manchester United started the season with a flurry of goals but in the last few weeks, their attack has been substandard. Pogba's absence and Mkhitaryan's dip in form are hampering United's attacking play. Marcus Rashford seems to be the only man in form for Mourinho and he cannot do it single-handedly against Tottenham.
United scored 21 times in the first seven league games but have managed just one in the subsequent two and their struggle in front of the goal is clearly visible.
Tottenham had the Premier League's best defensive record in the last 2 seasons and have carried last season's form into the 2017-18 campaign. In the last 5 games, they have conceded just thrice. Toby Alderweireld, Jan Vertonghen, and Davinson Sanchez have been in top form and United need to be at their best to breach Tottenham's backline.
#4 United no.10 conundrum
Manchester United no.10 Henrikh Mkhitaryan had a great start to 2017/18 season notching up 5 assists in his first 3 league games. But in the last few weeks, he struggled for consistency and was dropped by Mourinho for the game against Huddersfield last week.
Juan Mata played as a no.10 but was not very effective and it was his mistake that directly led to Huddersfield's goal. Except for Mata and Mkhitaryan, Manchester United don't have a recognized no.10 and Mourinho needs to fix that area of the pitch sooner rather than later.
United scored a lot of goals early in the season because of the creative play from Mkhitaryan and Mata. With both of them out of form in recent weeks, United will find it hard to create chances against a mean Spurs defence.
#3 Fitness of Goal-hungry Harry Kane
This man can't stop scoring at the moment. Harry Kane has been in stunning form this season and tops the scoring charts in Premier League (8 goals) and UEFA Champions League (5 goals).
But on Thursday, Pochettino confirmed that Harry Kane is a doubt for the all-important Manchester United clash. He suffered a thigh injury against Liverpool and did not play a part in the midweek Carabao cup tie. Kane is the fulcrum behind Tottenham's recent success and his absence will certainly have a huge impact on the result.
Kane is the focal point of Tottenham's attack play and his absence will be a relief to United defenders and a problem for Pochettino. With Dele Alli not in great form, Tottenham will find it hard to breach the Old Trafford fortress.
#2 Lukaku's poor form and his track record against top 6
Romelu Lukaku got off to a stunning start to the 2017-18 campaign, scoring 16 times in his first 13 games for club and country. But in the last 4 games, he failed to score a single goal and United is struggling because of his poor form.
Lukaku has developed an excellent understanding with Paul Pogba and the latter's absence is clearly affecting his game. Also, the Belgian is yet to prove his mettle against the top Premier League sides. He is a prolific marksman but against the top sides, he failed more often than not and he would like to reverse that trend if he wants to prove himself as one of Europe's best strikers.
Lukaku's strength, pace, and aggression will be key for United in breaking Spurs defence. If United wants to come away with three points, Lukaku has to be at his belligerent best.
#1 Stopping Christian Eriksen is the key to beating Spurs
With Dele Alli out of form, all the onus is on Christian Eriksen to provide the creative spark and he has been doing that brilliantly over the last few weeks. In 9 games, Eriksen has scored 3 times and assisted 2 more with 2.3 key passes per game and a pass accuracy of 85 percent.
Eriksen has orchestrated most of the Spurs attacking play this season and stopping him will be key to United's success this week. He runs the game from midfield, holds the possession and very incisive with his passing.
Ander Herrera did a superb job of marking Eden Hazard in United's famous win over Chelsea last season. Mourinho needs to make use of his man-marking skills to smother out Christian Eriksen.
