Dempsey’s Fergie time blow to United’s title tilt

Tottenham 1 Manchester United 1

Manchester United’s position at the top of the Premier League table has been built on late winners this term and their five-point lead still looks healthy.

But stoppage-time has also been hurting them as well; famously Manchester City won the title in the final moments of last season and Clint Dempsey’s last-gasp equaliser in this game meant United have dropped five points against a team that rarely troubled them in the past.

The American netted the decider in Spurs’ 3-2 Old Trafford success in September, you may recall.

City have yet to come to White Hart Lane however and, for what it’s worth, Arsenal have a derby fixture there too, so Ferguson was confident Andre Villas-Boas’s side, who are now four points clear of fifth-place Everton, could do United a favour or two.

“We have all the difficult games away from home so far so I think we can be pleased on that part,” the Scot said.

“Other teams will drop points here, there is no doubt about that. Tottenham are a very good team, very committed and will take points off the teams that maybe matter to us.”

Ferguson was convinced linesman Simon Beck did his players no favours however for not awarding his side a penalty that, had it been converted, would surely have restored United’s pre-weekend advantage of seven points.

But it was a day when the officials, who had earlier passed the pitch fit to play after snowfall threatened to obscure the markings, won few friends elsewhere as referee Chris Foy found his decisions vociferously criticised by the home support, who went home feeling justice had been done by Dempsey’s equaliser.

David de Gea, the United goalkeeper, was the man at fault for Tottenham’s equaliser with a poor punch that ruined an otherwise impressive performance that had begun with a smart save to deny Aaron Lennon and then spring to paw away a follow-up from an offside Jermain Defoe.

United’s response was the opening goal and unsurprisingly it was Robin van Persie who scored it in the 25th minute. Danny Welbeck found Tom Cleverley on the right of the box and the Spurs defence, and Kyle Walker in particular, nodded off just long enough for the Dutchman to nod home goal number 22 in a United shirt at the back post.

For a few minutes referee Foy was the centre of attention, booking home captain Michael Dawson for a challenge on Patrice Evra that he had initially deemed not even a foul, and then failing to punish Shinji Kagawa for hauling Moussa Dembele back.

Gareth Bale had been kept quiet and began to rove away from his usual left wing berth in search of an opening.

One duly arrived four minutes before the break but De Gea made another good save, with his legs, to keep out the Welshman’s deflected drive.

The second half began with Defoe firing a decent chance wide, Bale curling another just over and De Gea again getting enough leg to deny Clint Dempsey after the American had been slipped in by Dembele.

Fergie was soon on his feet in anger, this time with arms outstretched after Wayne Rooney, freshly on for Shinji Kagawa, appeared to have been impeded in the box by Steven Caulker — this was the incident, ignored by Foy, that caused him to unload with such vitriol afterwards on the unwitting stand-side linesman.

Welbeck poked a great chance to wrap up victory wide at full stretch but the Premier League leaders were twice indebted to Rio Ferdinand first for a sliding block as Defoe pulled the trigger and then to deflect a Bale drive inches wide.

United were not destined to come through however; De Gea’s poor punch went straight to Lennon, who set Dempsey up for a simple finish.

Tottenham (4-2-3-1): Lloris 6; Walker 6, Dawson 7, Caulker 7, Naughton 6 (Assou-Ekotto 65, 6); Parker 6 (Huddlestone 80), Dembele 7; Lennon 8, Dempsey 7, Bale 7; Defoe 6.

Manchester United (4-2-3-1): De Gea 6; Rafael 6, Ferdinand 7, Vidic 7, Evra 6; Carrick 7, Jones 7, Welbeck 6, Kagawa 6 (Rooney 62, 6), Cleverley 7 (Valencia 75); van Persie 7.

Referee: Chris Foy 6.