Tottenham Hotspur’s summer signing had to wait until late on to get his chance.
When Tottenham Hotsur signed Fernando Llorente from Swansea City in the summer, it was hailed as a brilliant piece of business for a team in need of quality back-up for regular top-scorer Harry Kane.
After all, here was a player who had experienced in abundance and who finished last season with 15 Premier League goals in 33 matches; seeming the ideal alternative when Kane was unavailable or Tottenham needed a Plan B.
While the two players differ in terms of style, Llorente is tailor-made for away matches at Old Trafford, where holding the ball up and bringing others into play is vital with chances always at a premium.
United’s defence has been outstanding for much of the campaign and Llorente’s physical approach could have given Eric Bailly and Phil Jones plenty to think about.
Instead, Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino opted to start Heung-min Son further forward, only calling on Llorente with just 28 minutes remaining.
Unfortunately for Tottenham and their Spanish forward, it was another substitute who changed the course of the game in the form of Anthony Martial, and in hindsight one wonders if Spurs would have been wiser putting more faith in their summer signing.
Llorente holds the ball up in a way Son simply cannot and playing the two together may have reaped richer rewards.
Llorente has barely started for Tottenham since he arrived but Saturday’s match was the ideal opportunity for him to build on his promising outing against Real Madrid earlier this month. Alas, it was not to be, and he has to wait a while longer to prove he is an able deputy for Kane.
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