Tottenham Hotspur Vs. Manchester United: 0-0 Full Time, Match Review

Despite being the better team for most of the match and Manchester United going down to ten men, Tottenham Hotspur were unable to convert their chances in a 0-0 draw at White Hart Lane. The hosts were the aggressors and held most of the possession during the match, but in the end, they only got a couple of shots on target. Spurs controlled the midfield, but Nemanja Vidic and Rio Ferdinand played a fantastic game at the back, preventing front men Peter Crouch and Rafael van der Vaart from putting any good chances on target.

Between bad fouls and corner kicks, Spurs were granted plenty of good set piece opportunities in the match, but they failed to convert on all of them. Usually, van der Vaart's left foot provides excellent service and shooting on set pieces, but today was not the Dutchman's best day. Between his struggles from dead balls and Crouch being outplayed by Vidic all day, Spurs failed to create chances despite dominating the match.

The biggest barrage of chances came at the end of the match, mostly due to United right back Rafael being sent off in the 74th minute. The Brazilian's trip on Benoit Assou-Ekotto looked like it may have been accidental, meaning Phil Dowd's second yellow card was a bit harsh, but it was clumsy no matter the intent, and Rafael's first yellow card was a borderline red card challenge. Additionally, Manchester United had failed to create opportunities for themselves up to this point, with Dimitar Berbatov looking especially anonymous. So, while Dowd's decision may have been incorrect, it's hard to make the argument that Rafael's sending off had any significant effect on the game.

While van der Vaart and Crouch were not at their best, a lot of the blame for wasted chances falls on the shoulders of Wilson Palacios. Tottenham's defensive midfielder unloaded on shots from long range on at least three occasions that sailed over the bar and never came anywhere near the target. These shots all came during good spells of possession where an opportunity may have been created by someone else had Palacios stayed patient.

So, in the end, despite the match being a pretty entertaining encounter, both teams lacked the quality to score a goal. Strangely, Manchester United will feel satisfied with a draw, while Tottenham Hotspur will be wondering what could have been. Maybe Spurs will take some solace in the fact that, for the third consecutive match against one of England's long-standing "Big Three" (let's face it, Liverpool aren't very good) of Arsenal, Chelsea, and Manchester United, they have been the better side.