Wasteful Manchester United held by Tottenham in stalemate

Manchester United failed to capitalise on a host of gilt-edged chances as they were held to a goalless draw by Tottenham Hotspur at White Hart Lane.

A dominant first-half display saw the Red Devils threaten to open the scoring, but Spurs goalkeeper Hugo Llors was in inspiring form. Juan Mata had the pick of the chances after his free-kick hit the post before being hacked away on the line.

Robin Van Persie and Radamel Falco ought to have beaten Lloris on at least one occasion, but Spurs were once again indebted to their goalkeeper.

Ashley Young also came close to breaking the deadlock when his curling shot was brilliantly tipped over by Hugo Lloris. On 23 minutes, Phil Jones’ header was brilliantly saved by Lloris before Jan Vertonghen hooked off the line to complete the clearance.

United also had chances in the second half as Van Persia’s volley missed the target when he was put through by Mata’s cross. Mata then turned finisher, but just like his United teammates, his effort did not trouble the Spurs goal.

Spurs offered little at the other end aside from the odd counter attack and rode their luck during the first half. However, the hosts continued to improve after the break, and Ryan Mason came closest to pinching Spurs the three points.

Harry Kane did brilliantly to hold the ball up against four United defenders and then slid a clever reverse pass through for Mason, who fired wastefully over the bar as he was bearing down on goal.

David De Gea was called upon to save Fazio’s low shot before the home side created their best chance of the match in the 82nd minute.

Spurs continued to press in the final 10 minutes but couldn’t grab another late winner as both sides settled for a share of the spoils less than 48 hours after their last outings.

Manchester United remain in third position with 33 points, seven points off table-topping Chelsea, while Spurs are up to sixth, one point above North London rivals Arsenal.

The draw means that United extended their unbeaten run to nine matches, while Spurts are now unbreaten in their last give matches against United.