Tottenham - 0 Manchester United - 2:FA PREMIERSHIP: Self-pity was much more of a danger to Manchester United than lamentable Spurs. They might have begun listening to their own tale of woe when Ruud van Nistelrooy could make nothing of a throng of opportunities in the first half.
It would have broken the the spirit of a lesser team, but Alex Ferguson's side, with a five-point lead, are champions-elect.
Their only suffering here came in the spell when they clung to Paul Scholes' 69th-minute goal and gulped as Gus Poyet grazed a header just wide from a Stephen Carr free-kick. Relief for United and their Dutch centre forward was delayed until stoppage time, when a strong run and pass by substitute Quinton Fortune put van Nistelrooy through for his 40th goal of the season.
Only a home match with Charlton Athletic and an intriguing engagement at Everton remain for United, whose goal difference is now superior to Arsenal's. Predictably, though, the manager is not soothed yet. "You don't get rest," he said. "You need resilience to go the whole way to the line."
United swept to their opener, with Scholes' alertness woven through it. He applied a flick of his head to ensure David Beckham's pass reached Ryan Giggs and then scampered into space to head the Welshman's cross beyond Kasey Keller.
For Spurs, the notional hope of a UEFA Cup place is gone and the future must make the fans shudder. There is a lack of drive from the middle of the pitch, where the veteran Poyet's guile is no longer complemented by the stamina to get into the danger areas. In attack, Robbie Keane was reduced to chasing and hoping and Teddy Sheringham was of scant help and his time at White Hart Lane is ending.
Ferguson judged Fabien Barthez, following his ineffectual nights against Real Madrid, had to be left out, but there was little to test the understudy Roy Carroll. Keller, by contrast, had to stand in the spotlight so often that he risked being blinded.
From the 15th second, when van Nistelrooy needed only the service of Carroll's clearance to turn Dean Richards before aiming a little too close to Keller, the Dutchman preyed on the Spurs defence. If the back four was trying to be close-knit it only seemed to ensure they would infect one another with vulnerability.
Van Nistelrooy was on his own to meet a Ryan Giggs cut-back in the 21st minute, but dabbed the ball wide. He was clear again two minutes later but Keller got a touch to his shot and Mauricio Taricco cleared from near the goal-line.
After 31 minutes, a Beckham cross was flighted past Carr, but Keller touched the van Nistelrooy header over the bar.
Only then did the forward's confidence waver. He was slick in collecting Roy Keane's pass and whirling free six minutes before half-time, but his misguided attempt to round Keller was the mark of a man no longer sure what decision to take in a situation where he is normally guided by instinct.
Glenn Hoddle grasped the truth.
"United have so many players who can score," said the Spurs manager. "That's the added dimension they perhaps have over everyone else in the League."
It is liable to separate them from Arsenal.
Guardian Service
TOTTENHAM: Keller, Carr, Taricco, King, Richards (Gardner 31), Davies, Poyet, Toda (Iversen 78), Etherington (Bunjevcevic 79), Sheringham, Keane. Subs Not Used: Sullivan, Acimovic.
MANCHESTER UTD: Carroll, Brown (Gary Neville 54), O'Shea, Ferdinand, Silvestre, Beckham, Keane, Scholes, Giggs, van Nistelrooy, Solskjaer (Fortune 72). Subs Not Used: Blanc, Ricardo, Forlan. Goals: Scholes 69, van Nistelrooy 90.
Referee: J Winter (Cleveland).
