An exquisite finish by Nani helped send Manchester United back to the top of the English Premier League table after a 3-1 win over Tottenham Hotspur at Old Trafford yesterday.
Following a drab first half, Ryan Giggs opened the scoring from the penalty spot, but United looked set for a frustrating afternoon after Ledley King powered in a 70th-minute equalizer.
Nani’s wonderful finish, however, made it 2-1 10 minutes from time, before Giggs sealed the points with his second penalty-kick.
PHOTO: AFP
Just as the sudden return of Wayne Rooney from injury lifted United in their recent Champions League game with Bayern Munich, his surprise absence from this game left the team subdued.
The England striker, who only returned from an ankle injury last week, was missing after suffering a groin strain in training on Thursday.
It was left to Dimitar Berbatov to lead the attack against his former club, yet the Bulgarian endured another frustrating afternoon as he failed to find the target for the sixth successive game.
Both teams have produced some cracking entertainment this season and this was an eagerly-awaited showdown between two of the league’s in-form clubs.
Yet the high-stakes clash was a dull affair for half an hour, Tottenham enjoying plenty of possession, but doing little with it, while United looked anything but title contenders.
Tottenham were living dangerously as they invited United to attack them and United’s pressure finally paid off when Benoit Assou-Ekotto upended Evra inside the penalty area.
Former Monaco full-back Evra had vomited on the pitch at the start of the second half, but it was Tottenham who were feeling sick when Giggs kept his composure to beat Gomes from the penalty spot in the 58th minute.
Yet United’s lead lasted just 12 minutes as King stunned Old Trafford after taking advantage of sloppy defending to power home the equaliser.
Nani came to the rescue with a wonderful 80th-minute finish to restore his side’s advantage and Tottenham’s hopes of stealing a point faded when Giggs kept his cool to make it 3-1.
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