Ange Postecoglou has scored his statement victory – that’s how good Tottenham can be

“That’s how we have to play – our season starts now.”

Dejan Kulusevski perfectly summed up how the mood among Tottenham Hotspur’s players, staff and supporters changed after they beat Manchester United 3-0 at Old Trafford.

Two weeks ago, fans were uneasy after Spurs lost at home to Arsenal in the North London derby. They had won just one of their first four games of the season and it appeared the issues that plagued them towards the end of the 2023/2024 season had not been addressed. Tottenham dominated the ball, but struggled to create good chances.

When they lost 1-0 to Coventry City in the 87th minute of their third round Carabao Cup tie, things threatened to turn toxic. Djed Spence and Brennan Johnson pulled off a remarkable comeback and this team has seemed to be on the same page ever since.

Sunday’s win against Erik ten Hag’s side marked the first time Tottenham had beaten a member of the Premier League’s traditional ‘Big Six’ away from home under Postecoglou and the result should put their season into gear. Performance must be the benchmark for the future.

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Spurs were great in the first half. Postecoglou’s philosophy is about playing bravely from the back and ruthlessly pushing opponents high up the pitch. There were indications throughout this match that the Tottenham side are becoming increasingly comfortable with the demands of their head coach and are not afraid to push on when things go wrong.

In the 19th minute, Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven attracted the United press. Van de Ven passed the ball around Alejandro Garnacho, Timo Werner pushed it past Matthijs de Ligt and Destiny Udogie had acres of space to drive into. Udogie found Kulusevski in the penalty area and the move ended when Johnson hit the post.

Manuel Ugarte made his first top start for United and was never allowed to settle for the ball. Dominic Solanke pushed him from behind while James Maddison and Kulusevski attacked him from the front. Noussair Mazraoui was overwhelmed on the left flank by Werner and Udogie. Tottenham suffocated their opponents and made them feel dizzy.

They recorded an expected goals rating (xG, which measures the quality of a team’s chances) of 4.7. Tottenham tore United apart even before Bruno Fernandes’ red card for a foul on Maddison in the 42nd minute. Fernandes’ dismissal was not the catalyst for their implosion but merely a symptom of it.

Van de Ven is an exceptional defender and his ability to drive up the field gives Postecoglou an extra weapon. Fernandes, Ugarte and Mazraoui looked afraid to challenge the Dutch international as he made his way into the penalty area and set up Johnson to open the scoring.

The star of the show was Kulusevski. It’s bizarre to think that the Sweden international had spent most of his time on the right wing at Tottenham since joining Juventus on an 18-month loan spell in January 2022. Postecoglou used him in central midfield last year and has continued to do so. with that this season. Kulusevski’s relationship with Maddison is blossoming and they possess a knack for breaking teams apart.

“They are both very good, intelligent footballers,” Postecoglou said at his post-match press conference. “The way we play suits their characteristics because Maddison does so much damage with the ball and Kulusevski does so much damage with his running. It’s a good balance for us in that attacking third.

“They also had to show good discipline today because we knew that the biggest threat to Manchester United is in transition. They are quite deadly with the guys up front that they have, so we wanted to make sure we got them today would lock up and that was the full-backs and that Maddison and Kulusevski would be really disciplined in their football. They’re both going really well and working really hard and improving.”

Kulusevski was the star at Old Trafford (Michael Regan/Getty Images)

Kulusevski created nine chances, more than any other visiting player in a top-flight match at Old Trafford since Opta’s records began in 2003. He should have provided at least two assists for perfectly timed through balls that sent Werner through on goal, but his team… Mate shot straight at Andre Onana on both occasions. Kulusevski called it a “dream to play at Old Trafford like this”.

“I’m growing as a player and can play to my strengths,” he said The Athletics. “I’m the best in the middle, I can score goals, I can find good passes and then I play with Maddison who is incredible with the ball. We have Rodrigo Bentancur, an incredible player when he plays like that. It looks offensive on paper, but it works really well.

“Our pressure in the first half was unbelievable. They couldn’t get the ball out. We won every time. We won 3-0, but if we had been clinical we would have won by more.”

What makes this result even more impressive is that Tottenham found a way to cope without captain Son Heung-min. The South Korea international felt fatigue in his hamstrings during Thursday’s 3-0 win against Qarabag in the Europa League. It is the first time that Son has missed a match due to injury since November 2022, when he suffered a broken eye socket. There are doubts about the finishing ability of Werner, who replaced Son in the starting line-up, but he continued to run past Mazraoui and a smart pass in the first half set up a good opportunity for Udogie.

There were many more positives, including Johnson scoring for the fourth game in a row. Lucas Bergvall, who looked heartbroken when he was substituted against Qarabag after Radu Dragusin’s red card, played a key role in Solanke’s goal with a sharp corner. Dragusin replaced Van de Ven for the final minutes and had the opportunity to quickly move on from his reckless moment on Thursday. Spence came on at half-time for Udogie, who was feeling pain in his right quad, and performed well both in and out of possession.

Postecoglou has said repeatedly since opening weekend that this team is improving and on Sunday the signs were there for all to see.

(Top photo: Michael Regan/Getty Images)