SOCCER: Manchester Utd 3 Tottenham 0THE SEASON has barely begun but Manchester United set off in pursuit of a 20th League title with their familiar persistence.
Danny Welbeck’s opener did not come until the 61st minute, but by then the outcome had started to look certain. The task, in effect, was completed a quarter of an hour later as Welbeck linked beautifully with Anderson, backheeling the ball to set up the midfielder’s finish. There was also to be a goal for Wayne Rooney when he headed home a delivery from the substitute Ryan Giggs three minutes from the end.
It says much for United’s status that the absence of almost all of the usual back four, with Patrice Evra alone in action, was not seen as much of a handicap. That perception also rested, of course, on the realisation that Tottenham had not won here in the league since 1989.
More pertinently, it can only have been detrimental to the visitors’ prospects that Luka Modric took no part here because he is aggrieved that a transfer to Chelsea has not gone ahead.
Harry Redknapp reported before the game that the club’s chairman Daniel Levy is implacably opposed to selling the Croatian in this transfer window. The side had a firm purpose of its own before the interval at Old Trafford.
There was a particularly good save from Brad Friedel, making his competitive debut in preference to Heurelho Gomes at the age of 40, when he tipped a drive from Tom Cleverley round the post in the eighth minute.
Although United pressed to some extent in the first half, Redknapp’s side were hardly on the verge of panic, even if they trembled slightly when a chip by Rooney picked out Ashley Young and the midfielder headed beyond the post after 27 minutes.
By then Alex Ferguson’s side could be pleased mostly that they had taken command. Even so, enough time had gone by without the opposition being breached for Tottenham to defend with a degree of poise at that time of the evening at least.
They had done a little more than that. The initial pressure from them led to a curious piece of goalkeeping. It was particularly unexpected since David de Gea has had the slightly awkward start to his career at United that would normally encourage a man to be especially cautious.
Instead he turned away with the ball at his feet in front of the posts, allowing a challenge from Rafael van der Vaart in the 14th minute that proved to be a foul.
It was an unusual incident, but there was at least an impression that Tottenham did not feel beleaguered even when they were being pushed back towards their own penalty area.
Even so, United were unlikely to buckle under any feeling of frustration on this pitch. They were unbeaten at home in the Premier League since Chelsea took full points in April 2010.
Tottenham lacked either the resilience to keep the opposition in check or the flair to knock them off-balance, yet Niko Kranjcar and Van der Vaart had excelled in a 5-0 defeat of Heart of Midlothian at Tynecastle in the first leg of their Europa League qualifier.
There is no comparison with the challenge of Old Trafford, but Tottenham did look a team in good spirits. This was their first Premier League fixture and they seemed resolute as well as fresh.
The onus was on United to increase the levels of stress. Ferguson’s side had established a degree of control, but there had been nothing to strike terror into the hearts of the opposition. United are at least schooled in showing patience, but they will also have known that there had been too little mayhem in and around the Tottenham penalty area.
Any sense of havoc to be seen at the very start of the second half was confined to the hosts’ penalty area.
Modric might have been elsewhere and the right-back Kyle Walker, unwell at the interval, made way for Vedran Corluka, but Tottenham resisted a vehement spell in which Friedel had to parry efforts from Anderson and Rooney in quick succession.
United were intent on persistence and it was to break Tottenham in the 61st minute.
Cleverley’s cross from deep on the right was a good, swinging delivery but the marking by Redknapp’s men was lax, with Welbeck getting in front of the captain Michael Dawson to head home.
United were instantly at ease and shortly after Friedel had to tip a free-kick from Rooney round the post.
United were liberated and even Jonny Evans was among those who kept the goalkeeper occupied with a shot in the 70th minute.
Nonetheless, Tottenham were stubborn and while United’s lead was slender there was hope.
Redknapp sent on another striker, with Roman Pavlyuchenko replacing Kranjcar, but the character of the match had assumed a familiar air that was ominous for Tottenham.
GuardianService
