Gary Neville believes Manchester United put in an ‘absolutely disgusting performance’ in their 3-0 defeat at home to Tottenham Hotspur, saying serious questions need to be answered by the players and by manager Erik ten Hag.
Ange Postecoglou’s side ran riot right from the very start at Old Trafford, with Brennan Johnson tapping in the opener after just three minutes following an unchallenged run up the left from Tottenham defender Micky van der Ven.
Spurs wasted numerous chances in the rest of the first half as Manchester United were repeatedly half-hearted and sluggish in their defensive efforts, with Johnson hitting the post and Andre Onana stopping two one-on-one opportunities that should have been buried.
READ MORE: Wasteful Tottenham still left laughing at Manchester United’s humiliation in Old Trafford rout
Bruno Fernandes was dismissed for a high challenge late in the first half, and Dejan Kulusevski’s volleyed flick over Onana off a deflected cross within two minutes of the restart killed off any remaining hopes of a United comeback.
Ten Hag’s side briefly and belated showed a bit of spirit in response but were unable to find a goal, and Dominic Solanke poked home from close range off a flicked-on corner to round off an excellent day for Spurs – and a nightmare afternoon for United.
Former Red Devils and England full-back Neville said on the final whistle: “Brilliant from Tottenham, and we should talk about that first, because it shouldn’t be lost that we’d be saying pretty harsh words about Ange Postecoglou [and] Spurs if they were on the receiving end of this type of performance today.
“They were outstanding. They played really good football from minute one, they settled into the game and they got really good goals at the right times, and their £60m man (Solanke) gets one as well. Van der Ven was special for that first goal.
“But for Manchester United…the Manchester United fans boo the referee going off in that corner, but that’s only half the story. The story today is that in that first half…you can’t say ‘from nowhere’, because Manchester United have been inconsistent all season, but they have chosen to put in the very worst performance, their very worst possible showing.
“It was an absolutely disgusting performance in that first half, in effort, quality, everything you want in a football team. There are going to be a lot of questions to answer for that group and the manager in the next week.”
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