You would expect a strange atmosphere to prevail at White Hart Lane for this match. Defeat at the hands of West Ham in their last game all but ended Tottenham’s faint hopes of catching league leaders Chelsea, while Man Utd are focusing on the Europa League and put out a weakened team in their last match.
Mourinho has put his eggs in one basket as he bids to qualify for next season’s Champions League. If his team win the Europa League final, they gain a place in the competition, and all the riches and pulling power that comes with it. They would also qualify if they finished fourth in the league, but Mourinho feels they have a better chance of winning the Europa League. You would therefore expect him to conserve the energy of his star players for this game against Spurs and field another weakened team.
Man Utd lost 2-0 to Arsenal as they rested many first team stars last weekend, and that was the first time Mourinho had ever lost a league game against Arsene Wenger. Tottenham are a much better team than Arsenal this season – and you can say that for the first time in more than two decades as Tottenham will finally finish above their great rivals – and should make short work of a weakened Man Utd.
That West Ham defeat shocked everyone as Tottenham had been on a roll beforehand. They have secured more points than any other Premiership team in 2017 and looked set to push Chelsea right to the wire. But they were uncharacteristically limp and none of their attacking players really got into the game. They will be disappointed to concede, but letting in the odd goal once in a while is no great shame for a defence that has acquitted itself exceptionally well all season. The disappointment will come from the toothless nature of Spurs’ attacking play. They have been accused of bottling it again on social media after they were keeping pace with Leicester City last season but then fell away. That is unfair. Tottenham have been far stronger mentally in the home straight this season, and will have a great chance to get back on track against Man Utd. It is still mathematically possible for them to win the league, so they will have to go for it.
As you would expect, Tottenham are the favourites, with Bet Victor offering 3/4 on them winning it. The draw is 14/5 with Bet365, while you can get 43/10 at 888 Sport on a Man Utd win. Man Utd emerged victorious when these two met at Old Trafford earlier in the season, but now that Man Utd’s long unbeaten run has come to an end it is hard to imagine them winning this one. It might be worth waiting to see the starting line ups before placing a bet, but Man Utd are expected to rest players, so the Tottenham win looks good at 3/4. The odds have drifted a little, so you might get am even better price closer to kick off.
Either way, Man Utd will be missing leading goal scorer Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who has suffered a bad injury and will be out possibly until next year. They have struggled for goals this season and without him that problem will be exacerbated. Tottenham have scored for fun in recent weeks but were blunted against West Ham, and will have a job breaking down a resilient, hardworking Man Utd defence, as regardless of who plays, Mourinho sides are always well-drilled. You can get 19/20 on under 2.5 goals in the game at green listed bookmaker Bet Victor, and that looks a really good option.
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