The big Premier League matches just keep on coming with Manchester United entertaining Spurs this weekend. Here are the key battles for the match at Old Trafford.
Rafael v Gareth Bale
Tottenham’s Gareth Bale has been a little quiet so far this season but he remains one of the biggest attacking threats that Spurs have at their disposal. Rafael has the pace to match the Spurs winger and the Brazilian has been playing well in the United defence. This is a battle where the roles of each player are going to switch regularly as both like to get up and down the flanks to provide assistance in both attack and defence.
Jonny Evans v Jermain Defoe
Jonny Evans now has a massive role to play in the United defence after it was confirmed that Nemanja Vidic would be out of action for two months. Evans played well in the match against Liverpool where United were made to soak up a lot of pressure. Defoe has been the main striker at Spurs this season and he has the responsibility of scoring big goals in games like this. It can only be considered a great season for Defoe if he dominates against the big sides.
Robin Van Persie v Jan Vertonghen
With Wayne Rooney unlikely to start the match Robin Van Persie will once again be the focus point of the United attack. Jan Vertonghen has the job of keeping him quite and the Spurs central defender will have to stay disciplined because Van Persie is going to try and pull him out of position. If Vertonghen can stay organised then it will be much harder for RVP to find space resulting in him dropping deeper as he goes in search of the ball.
Nani v Kyle Naughton
Kyle Naughton is expected to fill in at left-back and he has a mammoth task if he’s selected to start. Naughton will have to keep Antonio Valencia quite down the right hand side of the pitch. Valencia was widely hailed as the best winger in the Premier League last season which makes the importance of keeping him off the ball extra significant. The other big question is whether Valencia will start the game after it emerged he was injured against Liverpool, but today Sir Alex Ferguson said it was ‘not serious’ and he is in contention. If Naughton leaves too much space then Spurs are going to be exposed down one side of the pitch and United will bide their time until they score. If Valencia is not ruled fit even an out of form Nani should provide a test.
Paul Scholes v Sandro
This is a battle between two players to see who is going to pull the strings in the midfield. Sandro may have to risk an early yellow card just to let Scholes know that he’s not going to have it all his own way in the middle. If Sandro does not stay on top of Scholes by regularly pressing him and trying to steal the ball then Scholes will pass Spurs to death and it will be a matter of time before he sets up a goal for United.
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