Two sides falling way short of pre-season expectations blundered their way to an inevitable draw at Old Trafford on Saturday.
Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur have now combined for just one Premier League win in 2026/27; that was United’s Gameweek 2 victory over Ipswich Town.
Six points from six is United’s worst-ever start to a Premier League season. Spurs only just avoided the same fate on Saturday, with a last-gasp draw leaving them a point ahead of where they were after six matches in 2008/09. Small victories, and all that…
Here are our Scout Notes from Manchester.
GREEN SHOOTS?
They again couldn’t sustain it for 90 minutes – the story of their season – but Spurs produced probably their best display of the campaign on Saturday.
In xG terms, it certainly was: 1.62 was their highest of 2026/27 so far. But aside from all things ‘expected’, on the eye, this was also a fairly positive display on the ball (up to the 18-yard box…), and encouragingly determined off it.
Once again, finishing badly let them down. Dominic Solanke (£5.8m) wasted two gilt-edged openings, Mohammed Kudus (£6.5m) couldn’t sufficiently wrap his boot around a 15-yard-effort, and Conor Gallagher (£5.3m) got caught in a tangle when bearing down on goal. All four were massive chances, and all four were spurned.
If Spurs could just sort out their shooting boots, they’d be, if far from fulfilling top-four aspirations, then maybe somewhere in the mid-table throng.
It’d also help a lively Savio (£6.5m) out: he’s joint-third among all FPL midfielders for chances created (11) since his Gameweek 3 debut. None have been converted into an assist.
Solanke’s late effort at least salvaged a point, with the Lilywhites doing well not to wilt when going a) 1-0 behind and b) down to 10 men after Rodrigo Bentancur‘s (£5.5m) daft red card.
“I think we are playing well, not [just] today, also the other games before Manchester, but today has been the game where, for the first time in this season, we showed to be a team.
“We played for the team-mates, we played together, we believed until the end of the game, we stayed inside of the game, in every situation, and we attacked as a team, we defended as a team, and the right football behaviour.” – Roberto De Zerbi
FAVOURABLE FIXTURE RUN FOR SPURS
So, can this improved display kickstart some form? After the sorry last few years, you wouldn’t be surprised if two steps were taken back after this half a pace forward.
The good thing is that the fixtures are mostly positive:
Chelsea and Leeds United away will be tough, but the Blues are at least shipping goals for fun. The next four games in north London are about as good as you could ask for, especially for a side wanting to end the home hoodoo.
While the attack misfires and looks prone to rotation – Omar Marmoush (£7.0m) was a big-name casualty here, as Kudus made his first start of 2026/27 – the defence is at least not irredeemably awful. In fact, since Gameweek 2, they’re ranked second for lowest xG conceded in the league, behind only Arsenal. Man Utd were limited to very few good openings on Saturday.
While Micky van de Ven (£5.0m) was rested after his international exertions, as signposted, Jan Paul van Hecke (£4.9m) extended his run of delivering something to four matches. After two clean sheets and a goal, this time it was defensive contribution (DefCon) points.
UNITED CONCERN INTENSIFIES
Gary Neville said after full-time that he’d “feel a lot more confident being a Tottenham Hotspur fan tonight… than I would a Manchester United fan”. Which is something you never want to hear someone say about your club.
United’s ongoing clean sheet drought has been widely highlighted but attacking-wise, the Ipswich Town match in Gameweek 2 is increasingly looking like an anomaly.
Above: Premier League teams with the lowest xG tallies in their last four matches
Lethargic, passive and lacking ideas on the ball, they really struggled to create much of note against a Spurs side going into this match in 20th.
The Red Devils had just one shot in the first half, a tame Amad Diallo (£5.7m) effort. Only one more attempt was added before the hour mark.
If there is a crumb of comfort, Carlos Baleba‘s (£4.9m) introduction sparked United’s best period of the game. The midfield looked better with his presence, and United went on to have 10 shots in the final half an hour. Bryan Mbeumo‘s (£7.9m) well-taken goal came during this period, and took him up to four returns in six games. Starting up front, he’d been starved of service for much of the game.
The final insult was still to come, however – United failing to hold a 1-0 lead against a side down to 10 men.
“Listen, I’m massively disappointed with the result, for sure. A mixed performance, to be totally honest. I think it was tough, it was challenging the first period definitely. We just couldn’t find a way to get ourselves into the game, whether that was with the ball or without the ball, we were just a little bit off it. Sometimes a little bit off it, a little bit slower with decision-making, a little bit didn’t quite see the pass, didn’t see the space, it just wasn’t there.” – Michael Carrick
How many points do we see arriving in the next six Gameweeks? The bookies listing Leeds as favourites next weekend says quite a bit.
BRUNO LOW
A fifth blank in six Gameweeks will only intensify the Bruno Fernandes (£11.9m) exodus. He’s the only player in the most-sold list above who isn’t being abandoned for (predominantly) fitness reasons.
Sometimes we can cling on to good underlying numbers when faced with a blank but on Saturday, an anonymous Bruno posted his lowest expected goal involvement (xGI) tally in a home match (0.16) in two years. Coincidentally, that previous benchmark was a Gameweek 6 home fixture against Spurs – but at least he had the defence of only lasting 40 minutes then!
He’s still on penalties, he’s still on set pieces, he still lasts 90 minutes and he’ll still keep teeing up chances and shooting – but in the cut-throat world of premium FPL picks, an off-the-boil £11.9m midfielder you’d captain maybe once in the next seven Gameweeks (Bournemouth (h) in Gameweek 8?) is a bit of a luxury item.
DEFCON BONANZA
The players went DefCon mad at Old Trafford, with 10 reaching their threshold. Harry Maguire (£4.8m) nearly made it 11.
Kobbie Mainoo (£5.5m) made it five straight successes, while Baleba hit his target despite only coming off the bench. Matheus Cunha (£7.9m) owners were big winners, as not only did the Brazilian bank DefCon points, but all that off-the-ball work, coupled with his assist, helped him to maximum bonus.
