“The reality is they’re not running enough,” an exasperated Gary Neville seethed after watching Manchester United toil to a 1–1 draw with Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday.
In the world of soccer punditry, where immediate, clipable reactions are the currency in trade, it can be easy to get sucked into hurried opinions. United were clearly the worse side for large swathes of their home clash with the club that started the weekend at the foot of the Premier League table. The buzz of boos at Old Trafford had scarcely faded when Neville was pushed for an explanation. Anyone could be forgiven for leaning upon the statistic that jumped off the page.
