A tale of two halves
At half-time, this looked like a case of how many for Manchester United? They had dominated the game, created chances and defended resolutely. What on earth happened?
This was a disaster of a second half. It was a woeful collapse against a team whose confidence was shredded. Newcastle stripped the belief from Tottenham a week ago and now it was time for United to finish the job, but they dithered and lost ground in the race for third.
United started the second half badly and never recovered. It was sloppy, it was slow and it was half-hearted at times. Pedro Porro's goal gave Tottenham some of their belief back and they should have been level before Son-Heung Min scored.
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They couldn't keep the ball and were overwhelmed by the desire of the hosts. The equaliser summed up so many of the problems. As United cleared their lines, Tyrell Malacia sauntered too far up the pitch, leaving Harry Kane in space behind him. You usually get punished when that happens.
This should have been a statement away win for a side who haven't always convinced on the road this season. Instead, it was another dent to their own confidence on their travels. Fulham remain the only team in the top 12 that they've beaten this season and even that came in the 93rd minute. They have to improve on that record.
Next week it is a tricky trip to Brighton. Nobody of a United persuasion will head to the Amex with too much confidence of landing what would be their biggest away win of the season.
The subs don't work
Erik ten Hag turned to his bench in waves at Tottenham but what the two double substitutions had in common was that they made United worse.
The first call to take off a lively Jadon Sancho and Christian Eriksen, who had controlled the first half, looked questionable. It came when Tottenham were upping the tempo but it took Fred and Anthony Martial too long to get up to speed.
With United suddenly now clinging on, Ten Hag turned to Malacia and Wout Weghorst to replace Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Antony. Malacia's introduction led to a switch in both full-back positions and he was caught out again for the equalising goal.
Ten Hag's changes have usually been excellent this season, but they didn't work this time around. They couldn't stem the tide of this game in the second half.
The criticism of Ten Hag's changes are justified, but it was also an example that this squad still isn't deep enough. The drop-off in quality is still significant and that has to change this summer. A striker is the priority, but there are others areas of the squad that can't be overlooked.
Fernandes' recovery
If Bruno Fernandes was feeling the effects of the foot injury he picked up at the weekend then he certainly tested it out at Tottenham. Twice he ended up in a crumbled heap after being wiped out by Cristian Romero and Pierre-Emile Hjoberg.
But those challenges didn't deter him. Fernandes had flickered in the first half before a brilliant pass released Marcus Rashford to double United's lead.
Somehow Fernandes then only hit the post from six yards when he could have killed off Tottenham's renaissance. It was a sensational bit of play to create the opportunity for himself, but he couldn't find the finish.
Fernandes has now played a part in 117 of United's 121 Premier League games since he joined the club. He's missed two through suspension, one through illness and one as a result of being rested. He has completed the full 90 minutes in 92 of those games.
His durability is a major asset. To recover in time to start this game was an impressive show of his ability to recover and withstand discomfort.
Sancho shines
Maybe in time we will come to look back at Sancho's penalty at Wembley in Sunday's shootout success against Brighton as a defining moment in his United career.
Ten Hag certainly hopes so. This week he spoke of that moment, when the winger banished his European Championship final demons, as giving the £73million signing "more courage and more belief". It looked like it when he curled in United's opener in north London.
Sancho's stylish finish was impossible to stop for Fraser Forster, starting outside the post and nestling into the bottom corner. It was the kind of quality in the final third he has delivered only in moments since his move from Borussia Dortmund.
He could have a goal from a similar angle soon after, again cutting inside Pedro Porro but this time his effort was blocked by Cristian Romero and cleared off the line by Ivan Perisic.
Sancho might consider himself a little unfortunate to have been taken off early in the second half, but this felt like another step forward for the 23-year-old.
Eriksen's return
There aren't many United players who get a warm welcome here, but an exception was made for Eriksen when his name was read out before kick-off. The Dane was very popular with Tottenham fans before leaving for Inter and what has happened since has made him a popular figure throughout the game.
He was indirectly hurting his former club quickly as well. He didn't touch the ball in the build-up to Sancho's opening goal, but his decoy run distracted Porro, who needs as few defensive responsibilities as possible, and opened up some run for the winger to finish superbly.
As soon as he did start touching the ball he was running the show. There was one superb flicked pass to Sancho and then another first-time ball over his shoulder to Rashford and just a general ability to just keep the ball moving. It was an excellent hour and he deserved the applause he got from all corners of the ground when he departed.
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