Following Tottenham’s 3-0 victory over Qarabag in the Europa League on Wednesday, in which Radu Dragusin saw red after eight minutes, Ange Postecoglou said: “It was great to see the lads persevere playing our football even though we were a man down.”
Central midfielder Archie Gray signed from Leeds United in the summer following an impressive season with the Championship club but in his two starts for Tottenham so far, including on Thursday night, he has been deployed at right-back.
When asked where he sees the 18-year-old in terms of positioning, Postecoglou said: “I see him in a Tottenham shirt and playing great football. He will be a significant contributor for us and I was really proud of the way he handled last night.”
Discussing another 18-year-old, Lucas Bergvall, who was withdrawn early on Thursday following Dragusin’s sending off, the Tottenham boss said he is “really keen” to “expose” the youngster to European football and added: “He will get plenty of chances to play.”
Looking ahead to today’s clash with Man United, he said Old Trafford is always “a tough” place to go but it is a challenge Spurs “will be ready for”.
Erik ten Hag has admitted Manchester United’s youth policy in the transfer market means it will take time for success to return to the club.
United have altered their approach since Ten Hag’s first window when Casemiro was signed to join a squad with other proven trophy-winners, including Cristiano Ronaldo and Raphael Varane, who has since retired.
Ten Hag’s major signings since then have been 25 or under, with the focus on younger players, as shown by the £52 million spent on Leny Yoro, but it means Ten Hag needs patience for his new players to develop. Other signings since 2023 have been a younger profile of player including Rasmus Hojlund (20 when signed), Mason Mount (24), Manuel Ugarte (23), Matthijs de Ligt (25) and Joshua Zirkzee (23).
“Those are the choices we have made in the last two seasons - and I understand the impression that many have for Manchester United because the history is so big,” Ten Hag said. “But those are the choices we have made - and also it has something to do with financials and other restrictions we have to deal with.
“We made the choice for younger players and you can’t expect them to be at the [top] level. We have to improve them and they have to improve themselves and we have to find a team that can be successful on a consistent basis.
“This team, in the last two years, has shown what they can do with patience. With patience we can win trophies and now we have to get more consistent.”
Ten Hag has been in the spotlight himself again this season as United have struggled for consistency, with draws against FC Twente and Crystal Palace in their last games and recent defeats by Liverpool and Brighton.
With United set to take on Tottenham, Ten Hag says he is building for the future as well as trying to continue his record of winning domestic knockout trophies in his third season as manager.
“We are where we are now, with this squad, but all the restrictions we had we have done good work,” he added. “Now we have to work with the squad, improve the squad. We have a good squad, with young players, we have to improve the team and we have high targets, we want to achieve those targets for this season and the years beyond.
“We have to succeed. We have to win trophies, that is what this club stands for. This club has the ambition to play on the highest platform and we want to achieve the Champions League. We have two routes, one is through the Premier League and one is through the Europa League.”
Ten Hag says he must cope with the scrutiny if the team play below United’s best, and his players must also deal with it.
“I think they [the players] will be judged every game - and that’s normal,” he said. “Everyone, for every game, is expecting United to be winning. We know that. It isn’t a secret for anyone.
“When you are in this club you have to deal with this factor - and we do. It doesn’t matter whether you are young or old. We have to cope with this and get the best out of it and match the expectations that everyone has.
“But we know also that, with all respect, young players, a young squad, a new team takes some time. We are going in a good direction, I think, in the last couple of weeks in many aspects of football.
“Now it’s about being more efficient and scoring more goals because that will win you games.”
Good afternoon and welcome to live coverage of Manchester United vs Tottenham Hotspur from the Premier League. This fixture sees the team in tenth travel to Old Trafford to take on the team in 11th but in truth, it is a tale of two sides looking to break into the top four come the end of the campaign. However, Erik ten Hag and Ange Postecoglou have both seen their side amass just seven points in a stuttering opening five league fixtures.
Following back-to-back victories in the Premier League and EFL Cup, scoring ten goals and keeping two clean sheets in the process, Man Utd have suffered somewhat of a reality check in the last week. They were held to a goalless draw away at winless Crystal Palace in the league before Ten Hag’s former side Twente took a point away from Old Trafford in the Europa League on Wednesday. Christian Eriksen’s spectacular opener was cancelled out when the Denmark international had his pocket unforgivably picked by Sam Lammers who equalised for the Dutch side following some calamitous defending from the home side.
Tottenham enjoyed a more convincing start to their Europa League campaign with a 3-0 win over Qarabag on Thursday, but it was not all straightforward for the north London side who had Radu Dragusin sent off after eight minutes before the visitors missed a penalty early in the second half with the game at 2-0. It did however, mark their third successive win in all competitions following a 3-1 victory at home to Brentford last time out in the league. With Dominic Solanke scoring in his last two appearances and Brennan Johnson making it three in three, there are reasons for positivity at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Three points today would see either side climb to eighth ahead of Brighton and Hove Albion and Nottingham Forest after they both saw their unbeaten start to the season come to an end on Saturday. A draw today would see the two teams finish the weekend where they started, one place apart in mid-table.