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Tottenham Hotspur were hardly at their best on Saturday, but Ange Postecoglou’s side still managed to secure a 4-1 victory away to Ipswich and achieve their first three-game winning streak in the Premier League this season.

IPSWICH 1-4 TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR - Highlights, recap & analysis

Ipswich had every opportunity in the world to beat Spurs for the second time this season, but Lady Luck was undeniably on the visitors’ side in this one. Liam Delap could have had a hat trick inside 6 minutes on another day, but it was Brennan Johnson who opened the scoring with a first-half brace before Djed Spence and Dejan Kulusevski put the game to bed near the end, just when it looked like another late collapse could be on the cards. Spurs’ goal difference now stands at +15 in the PL — 4th-best, behind only Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester City — and Micky van de Ven and Cristian Romero are expected to return from injury within the next week or two.

Ange Postecoglou reaction — What did Spurs boss say after win away to Ipswich?

“They’re one of the hardest working teams in the league. You know you’re going up against a battle and a contest — we had to do that today. First half, we could have done better. We allowed them some moments, but in the second half we dug in.

“That allowed us to execute and play our football. When you come to a place like this, the crowd creates some energy. We had to weather that storm.”

…

“We were always a threat. Sonny was unplayable in that first half. So great to get Brennan back. He scores so many goals for us in those areas.”

…

“The fact that we can throw people on from the bench who can contribute — I could give Madders [James Maddison] and Pedro [Porro] a rest today. Everyone gets a boost. From our perspective, these last two weeks have given us a breather and reset our football. I’m pleased the boys have embraced it.”

…

"[Kevin Danso has] been great for us since he came in. He’s really taken to the club, taken to the group of players, taken on the challenge. It’s not easy when you’re coming into a new club and we’re asking him to come in and almost be a senior member. We still had three teenagers out there starting today, and a fourth coming on. It’s still a really young team. I think Kevin’s been a super addition for us.”

Brace scorer Brennan Johnson, on Spurs’ 4-1 win over Ipswich

“We have always tried to believe. When we have all the players back, we won the last two Premier League games and that’s something we wanted to keep in mind. We played good football, but also defended well.”

“With more experienced players, they have had to deal with these games when we’re 2-0 up, but then concede one. When we have these experienced players back, we know how to get onto the ball.”

…

“They beat us last time and that was in our heads because we didn’t want to lose today. It’s Tottenham Hotspur — we want to be as high as we can. We want to get right up the league.”

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Tottenham Hotspur will try to make it three straight wins in the Premier League for the first time all season when they visit relegation-threatened Ipswich on Saturday (9 am ET), as Ange Postecoglou’s side slowly but surely grows stronger with players returning from injury.

WATCH LIVE - Ipswich vs Tottenham Hotspur

Spurs (12th - 30 points) have not only won back-to-back PL games for just the second time this season, but kept clean sheets in each as well. Coincidentally, it was also Brentford and Manchester United who they beat in succession back in September. There is also the small matter of revenge to exact against the Tractor Boys, who handed Spurs perhaps their most crushing defeat of the season in November — sat in 18th at the time, Ipswich picked up their first win of the season in north London in matchweek 11.

Ipswich (still 18th - 17 points) have won twice more since and remain exactly where they were when they beat Spurs the last time — two points below the relegation line, not with just 13 games left to play. The recent defeat to last-place Southampton, who have just two wins on the season, could have taken all the wind out of their sails but Kieran McKenna’s side bounced back in a big way by drawing Aston Villa last weekend to snap a four-game losing streak. Still, Ipswich are winless in their last six league games (0W-2D-4L). There’s still plenty of time, until there isn’t.

How to watch Ipswich vs Tottenham Hotspur live, stream link and start time

Kick off time: 10 am ET Saturday

Venue: Portman Road — Ipswich

TV Channel: USA Network

Streaming: Watch live online via NBC.com

Ipswich team news, focus

OUT: Axel Tuanzebe (suspension), Wes Burns (knee), Chiedozie Ogbene (achilles - out for season), Conor Chaplin (knee), Christian Walton (groin) | QUESTIONABLE: Sammi Szmodics (ankle), Julio Enciso (knee), Sam Morsy (abdominal), Leif Davis (undisclosed)

Tottenham Hotspur team news, focus

OUT: Micky van de Ven (hamstring), Dominic Solanke (knee - MORE), Cristian Romero (hamstring), Richarlison (lower leg), Radu Dragusin (torn ACL - out for season) | QUESTIONABLE: Heung-min Son (knock), Kevin Danso (knock), Rodrigo Bentancur (knock), Timo Werner (thigh)

Ipswich vs Tottenham Hotspur prediction

Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim is again dealing with the losing end of a Premier League match after his misfiring attack was blanked 1-0 by Tottenham Hotspur in North London on Sunday.

The Red Devils remain embroiled in the mess that is the bottom-half of the Premier League, and there are few players or staffers who should be pleased with their first-half levels in going behind to their London hosts.

MORE — Recap, analysis from Spurs 1-0 Man United

The second half was much better as captain Bruno Fernandes — a force over the entirety of the match — did his best to inspire chance after chance without finish from a sputtering group of forwards.

It was one moment from an opportunistic, rebound-hunting James Maddison that sent the Red Devils to a third loss in four Premier League matches, as United is 2W-1D-6L in the league since December 22.

Here’s how the Man United manager saw it.

Ruben Amorim reaction — How did Manchester United manager react to loss at Tottenham Hotspur?

Many missed chances? “The difference of the game was they scored, we didd’t score. We had our opportunities to score. At the end of the first half we pushed a little bit harder. We had the situations. We suffered some transitions because we were trying to get results but in the end they scored and we didn’t.”

On all the absences for this game: “It doesn’t matter. It’s in the past. We want to recover players. We can recover some for the next game. From this moment until the end of the season it’s going to be like that. So we have to be together, to finish the season, and start over.”

Has he ever had a bench as young as this in his career? “At my former club I had it but it’s completely different because this is the hardest competition in the world and [Sporting Lisbon] are playing in one competition that is not too strong. So I’m trying to be careful with [the young players}. They will play. You try to read the game and understand what you’re seeing in training. I felt our team was pushing for the goal. I didn’t feel the need to make changes.”

Concerned about his status? “I’m not worried, again. Of course I understand our friends and what people in media think about it. I just want to finish the league strong. I’m not worried about me. I’m worried about the club, I’m worried about the team, the players. So for me it’s the same — I just hate to lose. The feeling is the worst thing. The rest I’m not worried about. I want to help my players, the young kids in this moment.”

“I’m just focused on helping my players. I understand my situation and my job so I never worry about that. I’m really confident in my work and I just want to win games. The place in the table is my worry, I’m not worried about me.”

Ruben Amorim post-game interview (video)

LONDON — Tottenham Hotspur beat Manchester United 1-0 on Sunday in a game which was dubbed by me many “the Europa League favorites derby” and a tense game highlighted the flaws of both teams.

James Maddison’s first half goal was the difference as Spurs soaked up plenty of pressure in the second half and were thankful both Alejandro Garnacho and Joshua Zirkzee missed big chances.

Ange Postecoglou’s side have now won back-to-back Premier League games for the first time since September.

Meanwhile Ruben Amorim has won just nine of his 21 games in all competitions in charge of United and have just two wins in their last nine in the Premier League.

Below is a look at what we learned as Tottenham Hotspur beat Manchester United in a clash between Premier League underachieving giants.

Bergvall, Maddison bring the quality Angeball needs

To play Angeball at its very best you need to have the ball and Spurs duo Maddison and Bergvall are so good on it and keeping it. They dictated the tempo in the first half and with ageing stars Casemiro and Bruno Fernandes United’s only fit midfielders left, Bergvall and Maddison ran rings around them. When your entire style of play is built on winning the ball back as quickly as possible to attack, you need players who can then keep it and sustain attacks and create some magic. Sarr and Bissouma are good at winning it back but not the best at keeping it and having two cool-headed central midfielders to calm things down and speed things up gives Spurs more control in games. Both came off in the second half with Sarr and Bissouma on for more defensive solidity but it was noticeable how Spurs struggled to keep any control late on. That was because Bergvall and Maddison weren’t around to control things and that duo are key moving forward.

Hojlund continues to struggle as wastefulness highlights Amad’s absence

Rasmus Hojlund looked like a striker who has scored just two times in 19 Premier league appearances this season. The Danish forward is lacking in confidence and that will happen when midfielders are played ahead of you up top, which has happened a lot recently. Others around Hojlund were better, with Alejandro Garnacho and Joshua Zirkzee showing some nice touches and dangerous on the counter. But both wasted huge chances, Garnacho in the first half and Zirkzee in the second. That highlighted the brutal absence of Amad Diallo, who announced on Saturday he has suffered an ankle injury which will keep him out for some time. If the 22-year-old winger was on the pitch at Spurs he would have surely buried one of those big chances. United are missing their top goal contributor in the Premier League (six goals, six assists) and it showed. Bruno Fernandes did his best to get United going in attack but they have lost eight of their last 12 Premier League games and never looked like they believed they could get an equalizer.

Spurs now have a chance to build some momentum

With players like Maddison, Guglielmo Vicario, Brennan Johnson and Wilson Odobert back from injury, plus new signings Mathys Tel and Kevin Danso obviously going to play a key part for the rest of the season, Spurs’ squad now looks so much stronger. Others are close to returning soon too and this win gives Spurs a platform to build from and for some momentum to arrive as they’ve finally secured consecutive PL wins for the first time in five months. They head to Ipswich then host Manchester City and Bournemouth before playing away at Fulham before the international break in March. If they can get through that run of games with three wins, that’s a great return and will likely see them back in the top half of the table. Amid all of that will be their Europa League last 16 clash and all of these players are returning for a key moment in their season. Spurs still have a long way to go but this is a good starting point.

Tottenham Hotspur will be happy to collect all three points at home, but perhaps even happier at the top-to-bottom performance of their unit in a 1-0 win over Manchester United in North London.

The visitors have a lot less to like and will be ruing its attacking output despite a spell-binding display from playmaker Bruno Fernandes.

How will Ruben Amorim and Ange Postecoglou see it? We’ll soon find out, but here’s how we judged the players of Spurs and Man United in a scrappy 1-0 affair at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Tottenham Hotspur player ratings vs Manchester United

Guglielmo Vicario: 8— Two solid early second-half saves on Garnacho, and so excellent with his feet. Gave a late reminder of his indecisiveness with balls in the air.

Pedro Porro: 7 — Never stopped buzzing through the wide areas and dealt well with a busy Garnacho.

Ben Davies: 7 — Piled up touches and played a tidy game, getting stuck into the physical game without reservation.

Kevin Danso (Off 78'): 7 — Led Spurs in defensive actions.

Djed Spence: 7.5 — Spurs did so well in the wide areas and Spence was leading the game in touches well into the game.

Rodrigo Bentancur (Off 78'): 6.5 — Passed the ball well but lacked match sharpness at times.

Lucas Bergvall (Off 64': 6 — Read the game well but weak in the duel (0-for-6 with two fouls).

James Maddison (Off 64'): 8.5 — Good follow-up to open the scoring, but it was his passing touch and interest in his own end that impressed the most.

Heung-min Son: 6.5 — Created four chances but it still missing his confidence and/or ambition as a finisher.

Dejan Kulusevski: 5.5 — Wanted to affect the game but was denied many times on the dribble.

Mathys Tel: 6.5 — Ripped off six shot attempts as only Maddison, who buried a high xG chance, accounted for more expected goals in the match.

Subs:

Brennan Johnson (On 64'): N/A

Pape Sarr (On 64'): 7 — Nearly set up a second Spurs goal late in the game.

Archie Gray (On 78'): N/A

Yves Bissouma (On 78'): N/A

Manchester United player ratings vs Tottenham Hotspur

Andre Onana: 8 — Couple of big first-half saves including the stop before Maddison deposited the rebound. A hard-luck loser, Onana led the game in recoveries with 10.

Noussair Mazraoui: 6.5 — At the center of everything and passed the ball well (46-of-48)

Matthijs De Ligt: 7 — Only Casemiro (15) had more defensive actions than the Dutch back’s 14.

Harry Maguire: 6 — A typical Maguire day. Passed well, no big gaffes, but a step slow overall.

Patrick Dorgu: 6.5 — Strong in the tackle but limited going forward.

Casemiro (Off 90+1'): 6.5 — His lack of speed is always going to be exposed but the Brazilian is still a canny operator who draws fouls and plays a physical game.

Bruno Fernandes: 9 — Did everything but score as his elite long-range passing was again denied end product by an absent United forward corps.

Diogo Dalot: 6.5 — Industrious out wide but wayward with his crosses.

Alejandro Garnacho: 6.5 — Lively as always but the finishing was not up to par. Butchered a glorious chance to equalize in the 23rd minute, skying the ball well over the goal.

Joshua Zirkzee: 6.5 — Came within a yard or two of turning Mazraoui’s 71st minute cross inside the far post. Good, decisive hold-up play.

Rasmus Hojlund: 5 — There’s no confidence in or coming out of the big center forward, who is struggling to impact games more often than not. Twenty-two touches in 90 minutes and a horrible 1-for-9 record in duels.

For once, Ange Postecoglou’s Tottenham Hotspur were the healthier of two Premier League combatants, and he won’t be surprised that it led to a 1-0 Spurs win.

Manchester United were down several players while Spurs returned a few including star goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario.

James Maddison, Djed Spence, and Pedro Porro all shone for Spurs, who have consecutive Premier League wins after a run of seven matches that produced just one point.

Spurs go from 15th to 12th, leaving their Sunday visitors in 15th in a match where one ailing giant was bound to take advantage of the other.

Ange Postecoglou reaction — How did Tottenham Hotspur manager react to

We’ll have Postecoglou’s post-match words as soon as he speaks, right here.

Can Man United get past Spurs without Diallo?  NBC Sports

Amid a season full of disappointing defeats for Tottenham Hotspur, there has at least been one small joy for Ange Postecoglou’s side: playing Manchester United.

WATCH LIVE – Tottenham Hotspur vs Manchester United

As they prepare to meet for the third time this season on Sunday (11:30 am ET), both sides find themselves stuck in an historically bad moment of their club’s history. With 13 Premier League defeats already (and 14 games still to play), Spurs (14th - 27 points) are barreling toward the club’s worst season since 2003-04 when they lost 19 times and finished 14th. And things aren’t any better for Manchester United (13th - 29 points), who have finally bottomed out (maybe) after years of slowly sinking as a result of numerous regrettable managerial hires and player signings. The Red Devils were also on the wrong end of Spurs’ best results of the season — 3-0 in the PL in September, and 4-3 in the League Cup quarterfinals — serving as Dr. Manchester United, for the notorious “Dr. Tottenham.”

Spurs’ injury crisis appears to be relenting at long last and as many as six players could make their long-awaited returns from injury this weekend. Chief among them are Micky van de Ven, Guglielmo Vicario and Brennan Johnson, but any combination of the six will give Postecoglou new options to change the game in the second half, rather than simply trying to finish each game with 11 healthy players on the field. Ruben Amorim doesn’t have an injury crisis to point to as the main reason for his side’s poor results since he took over back in November (4W-2D-7L in the PL, and 9W-3D-8L in all competitions), with few, if any, signs of improvement in nearly three months.

How to watch Tottenham Hotspur vs Manchester United live, stream link and start time

Kick off time: 11:30 am ET Sunday (February 16)

Venue: Tottenham Hotspur Stadium — London

TV Channel: Peacock

Streaming: Premier League on Peacock

Tottenham Hotspur team news, focus

OUT: Richarlison (lower leg), Radu Dragusin (ACL), Dominic Solanke (knee - MORE), Wilson Odobert (thigh), Cristian Romero (quad) | QUESTIONABLE: Micky van de Ven (fitness), James Maddison (undisclosed), Destiny Udogie (thigh), Guglielmo Vicario (fractured ankle - MORE), Timo Werner (thigh), Brennan Johnson (calf)

Manchester United team news, focus

OUT: Mason Mount (thigh), Luke Shaw (foot), Jonny Evans (muscular), Lisandro Martinez (knee), Altay Bayindir (other)

Tottenham Hotspur vs Manchester United prediction

Expect more chaos in Spurs v. Man United clash  NBC Sports