Erik ten Hag can no longer rely on the excuse saving his Manchester United job

Tottenham Hotspur dominated against Manchester United and they were missing their three best players, Son Heung-min, James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski.

Yves Bissouma and Pape Matar Sarr were also absent after travelling to the Africa Cup of Nations, which meant their midfield consisted of Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, Oliver Skipp and Rodrigo Bentancur.

Spurs had 64 per cent possession and they recorded 16 shots. The only thing missing from their confident second-half performance was a winning goal for the victory.

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The absence of Tottenham's best players affected their quality but Ange Postecoglou has given them a clear identity, meaning every player in the squad is drilled to execute the plan.

Tottenham want to play on the front foot, press and defend with a high line to win the ball in dangerous areas. They want to entertain and Postecoglou has done a wonderful job.

However, his success in implementing a distinguishable style in six months has made United supporters question Erik ten Hag, whose team has looked disjointed this season.

United have relied on moments of individual brilliance and that was evident again at Old Trafford on Sunday afternoon because although Rasmus Hojlund and Marcus Rashford scored brilliant goals, there was no control in midfield and the team's performance was poor.

Hojbjerg, Skipp and Bentancur are hardly an intimidating midfield three and yet they ran the game. Christian Eriksen had been a passenger and was replaced by Scott McTominay just before the hour mark, but that substitution failed to disrupt Tottenham's rhythm.

United were inferior in the second half and were