Michael Dawson questioned why Sergio Reguilon tried to play offside during Tottenham’s 3-2 defeat to Manchester United on Saturday, as they told Sky Sports Premier League.
The moment Dawson was making reference to was Cristiano Ronaldo’s second goal, where Keane thinks the Tottenham players ‘just relaxed’, as Dawson pointed out Reguilon’s mistake.
The Spurs left-footer was waving for an offside flag when Ronaldo ran off his shoulder, and instead of tracking him back, he lost sight of him so he can put Man United 2-1 up at the time.
It was the story of Tottenham’s evening at Old Trafford because every time they put themselves ahead, Ronaldo would return with blows of his own.
Either way, this is what both Dawson and Keane made of Tottenham’s defending yesterday, including Reguilon’s call to play offside.
“Really poor defending from Tottenham,” said Keane. “They have equalised and relaxed. You can’t relax against quality players like United.”
Dawson added: “There’s no reason to play offside. Three minutes they have been back in the game. Reguilon plays him on.
“The distance between the ball and the defenders. It’s too high. For 20 minutes, Spurs were defending deep and no opportunities behind.”
Keane: “I think they just relaxed. They are almost patting themselves on the back and almost saying ‘we are back in the game’. Concentration. Players not doing the right jobs. You get punished for it.”
This defeat would have been a double blow to Antonio Conte because they were beaten by their fellow Champions League-chasing rivals.
Whilst some will feel, and rightly so, that without Ronaldo, then Spurs would have perhaps got something out of the game.
But, to be fair, the same could be said for Harry Kane and Heung-Min Son, who have been sensational in recent weeks for the north London club.
Without them, Spurs wouldn’t be in a great place, but Dejan Kulusevski is someone else who is also starting to shine bright and deserves huge praise.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
