Tottenham Hotspur overpowered Manchester United with a thrilling second half display to hand Ange Postecoglou his first win as Spurs coach.
Pape Sarr’s strike and a Lisandro Martinez own goal settled a pulsating Premier League clash in London on Saturday evening, with the hosts deserved winners after going through the gears in the second 45.
If supporters had felt disheartened by the recent departure of club legend Harry Kane to Bayern Munich then this will have lifted their spirits as they got an exhilarating glimpse of the future.
Postecoglou has been a beacon of hope to the club and his entertaining, new-look side sealed a fine 2-0 win over a United team that wilted as the game went on.
The Australian manager said: "It was good. It was fair to say we looked a bit nervous at the start which wasn't surprising. We had two 20-year-olds, a couple of 22-year-olds out there. So I thought we gave the ball away a little bit too much and to be fair Man Utd probably had the better of the chances.
"I like the fact that we hang in there and worked our way into the game. Second half, certainly in spells, it kind of showed the team we want to be. I keep saying we're still a long way to go but I really liked the belief and resilience the guys have and the bravery they have to continue playing that way.
"I guess from my perspective, when you have quite a few young quality players it's great, it allows us to build with this young group. I thought the experienced guys today, Son [Heung-min] and [James] Maddison were great as well.
"The support was outstanding today, right from the first whistle the crowd were outstanding. They carried us through the first half because we were nervy.
"I'm happy. We're showing bits of our game today. I saw enough today in our game that encourages me. All we can do is keep improving and hopefully we're picking up points along the way."
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Ben Davies of Tottenham Hotspur forces the team's second goal during the Premier League match against Manchester United. Getty -
Pedro Porro congratulates Tottenham Hotspur's Senegalese midfielder Pape Matar Sarr after he scored the opening goal. AFP -
Ange Postecoglou, manager of Tottenham Hotspur, reacts during the Premier League game against Manchester United. Getty -
Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag berates his side. Reuters -
Bruno Fernandes gets a shot away in a rare Manchester United attack. EPA -
Tottenham Hotspur's Senegalese midfielder Pape Matar Sarr scores the opener. AFP -
Tottenham's players and fans celebrate after Pape Matar Sarr scored the opening goal. AP -
Tottenham's Italian goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario jumps highest to claim the ball. AFP
Erik ten Hag’s United – playing under the cloud of continued talk about Mason Greenwood’s future – began on the front foot in north London and could have gone into the break ahead.
United were aggrieved not to have been awarded a penalty after the VAR reviewed a Cristian Romero handball in a half that saw Marcus Rashford and, in particular, Bruno Fernandes waste good chances.
Those let-offs allowed Spurs to grow into proceedings, with Pedro Porro smashing an effort off the bar before Luke Shaw deflected a Sarr cross on to the post just before the break.
Spurs returned with the bit between their teeth and took a 49th minute lead as Sarr reacted quickest to a deflected Dejan Kulusevski cross to score his first goal for the club.
Antony struck the post as the sides traded blows in a thrill-a-minute start to a second period that eventually calmed down, with Martinez’s late own goal wrapping up a home win.
