Ruthless Ronnie Leads Reds to Victory: Manchester United 3-2 Tottenham Hotspur
The ageless Cristiano Ronaldo was at his brilliant best this weekend with his spectacular hat trick guiding Manchester United to an important 3-2 win over Spurs.
A tentative start from both sides saw a slow and forgettable first ten minutes come to a complete halt when United’s No.7 rolled back the years and unleashed a thunderous strike. Despite his age, giving Cristiano Ronaldo time and space outside the box is risky, and Ronaldo’s powerful strike flew past Hugo Lloris and punished Spurs for giving him the opportunity.
The flick 👌
The finish 🤯@Cristiano broke the #MUNTOT deadlock in style 🔓👌#MUFC | @RemingtonUK pic.twitter.com/OEkMvXIHbI— Manchester United (@ManUtd) March 13, 2022
United’s opening goal didn’t have a major impact on the course of the game with United and Spurs looking sloppy and not taking the game to one another.
Tottenham finally started to apply some pressure and were rewarded when a cross was met by the arm of Alex Telles, giving Harry Kane the chance to slot his penalty past David De Gea just past the half-hour mark.
Spurs were level for less than three minutes when Nemanja Matic clipped a delightful ball in behind the Spurs backline, giving an in-form Jadon Sancho the chance to drive in behind and pick out Ronaldo, who finished easily for his second.
Spurs came out in the second half with a bit more urgency but were struggling to find a spark. They managed to pull level in the 72nd minute when a teasing cross was drilled in and met by Harry Maguire, whose attempted clearance turned the ball into his own net.
Once again, Spurs were equal with the Red Devils for less than 10 minutes before Cristiano Ronaldo replied.
A well-delivered corner was met by Ronaldo and his powerful header nestled into the top right and sealed the three points for United.
A poor performance from Tottenham was matched by Manchester United but the outstanding performance from Ronaldo dragged United to an important win in their pursuit for the top four.
Liverpool in Hot Pursuit: Brighton 0-2 Liverpool
Liverpool’s pursuit of Manchester City at the top of the table has not slowed down as their 2-0 win away at Brighton has kept them hot on City’s heels.
Liverpool started fast and looked to smother Brighton with their high intensity.
New signing Luis Diaz was looking to cause problems for The Seagulls’ backline and got the better of them in the 19th minute. A clipped ball over the top was met by Diaz and the Colombian managed to head the ball past the on-rushing Victor Sanchez before being taken out by the keeper.
A VAR check deemed Sanchez’s collision with Diaz not dangerous and left a few fans scratching their heads at the decision.
Liverpool remained on top for the majority of the game and doubled their lead just past the hour mark when Mo Salah calmly slotted away a penalty and secured the victory on the road.
Liverpool will keep pushing City until the end of the season with Brighton struggling for from in recent weeks and dropping away from the middle of the table.
City Left Frustrated: Crystal Palace 0-0 Manchester City
Manchester City’s hopes of extending their lead at the top of the table hit a roadblock with their stalemate away at Selhurst Park.
City dominated the lion’s share of possession and created numerous opportunities to take the lead but were unable to find the finishing touches.
Bernardo Silva had the best chance of the game when Jack Grealish fizzed in a low cross, but the sheer power on the delivery made it difficult for Silva and his effort went wide.
Crystal Palace were excellent throughout the 90 minutes and deservedly kept City out and could have taken all three points with a little more ambition up top.
Best of the Rest
Arsenal’s purple patch continued with a 2-0 home win over Leicester. Thomas Partey opened the scoring before Lacazette’s second half penalty put the game to bed.
West Ham picked up a vital three points against Aston Villa thanks to goals from Yarmelenko and Pablo Fornals.
Burnley’s fight for Premier League survival hit a bump in the road when they conceded two late goals to Brentford’s talisman, Ivan Toney.
Jesse Marsch picked up his first win in change of Leeds thanks to a last gasp winner from Joe Gelhardt in their tie with Norwich. The 2-1 victory allows Leeds to create some space between themselves and the drop zone.
Cucho Hernandez scored a brace in Watford’s 2-1 victory over Southampton.
Everton’s torrid time continued with a 1-0 loss to Wolves, whilst Chelsea have Kai Havertz to thank for his 89th minute winner against Newcastle.
Player of the Week – Cristiano Ronaldo
Cristiano Ronaldo’s hat-trick would earn him almost anyone’s ‘Player of the Week.’ A phenomenal performance from start to finish with three goals that dragged his side to victory has shown his importance to this United side and the 37-year-old is showing no signs of slowing down.
