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DO YOU SEE what magic you can cast if you don’t relax, José?
Tottenham, for once, did not sit in a lead at halftime and was rewarded with a moment of genius from Tanguy Ndombele.
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Serge Aurier and Harry Kane had put José Mourinho’s men 2-0 up at half-time.
And no matter what the former Chelsea and Manchester United boss says, that’s usually the moment his team hits the handbrake and tries to see him.
That pragmatic approach has seen them abandon a TEN points after throwing tracks at break this period.
But in this game, despite conceding a header in the 58th minute to David McGoldrick, they couldn’t be accused of finishing.
This led to Ndombele brilliantly scoring goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale from an extremely acute angle for one of the best goals you are likely to see this season.
Mourinho protested before the kickoff that yes NO order your players to sit on the slopes.
Pressured by what he says to his team at halftime, the Tottenham boss replied: “Play attacking football, be dominant, kill games, don’t accept dominance (from the other side) … do you believe me?”
Honestly? Not really, Jose. Not based on what his team seemed to do exactly that against Crystal Palace, Liverpool, Wolves, and most recently Fulham.
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But to be fair, there was no trace of it here. Not that Sheffield United seemed incapable of regaining a two-goal lead, anyway.
Surprisingly, the Spurs hadn’t won a league game at Bramall Lane in 46 YEARS.
That streak included a 6-0 thrashing in 1993 and the 3-1 loss Chris Wilder’s men dealt with Mourinho in July.
And after back-to-back victories for the first time this season, albeit against Bristol Rovers in the FA Cup and a team from Newcastle that Steve Bruce described as ‘absolute crap’, one would have expected Wilder’s men to have their tails up. .
But there is a reason they are at the bottom of the league with just five points and within five minutes any positivity was erased.
That’s when they were delayed into a routine corner in which Son Heung-min turned and Aurier headed for the nearby post.
The Frenchman was later harassed by eight of his teammates in a massive hug that will no doubt further enrage politicians who insist players must remain socially distant in celebration.
Kane e Son’s partnership has been one of the highlights of the season this period, not just for Spurs but for the Premier League arrival.
The pair match Alan Shearer and Chris Sutton’s record of 13 combined goals in a season against Leeds earlier this month.
And they almost broke it here in eight minutes when Kane, once again falling deep, fed Son, who slashed the ball over the advancing Ramsdale but hit the post.
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The hosts offered almost nothing and were the architects of their own downfall, with two left behind shortly before the break.
They lost the ball when they tried to play from behind while Oli Norwood had his pocket picked up.
That allowed Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg to feed Kane, who drove on a shy baseline that allowed him to find the bottom corner.
The strike moved Kane to 207 goals for the club and one for second-leading scorer Bobby Smith, though still another 59 short of Jimmy Greaves’ record.
The Blades’ performance had harsh critics Graeme Souness and Roy Keane furious at halftime.
Souness called the defense of the second goal “pathetic.”
While Keane ranted: “They could go on to be one of the worst teams to ever play in the Premier League.”
The big question at halftime was whether the Spurs would once again throw a lead by sitting down and trying to watch it.
It felt unlikely, given how little Wilder’s men offered in the future.
However, when McGoldrick came home to cut the deficit in half just before time, you started wondering.
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United have had such poor attacking quality this season, but John Fleck’s delivery was spot on and McGoldrick did the rest.
However, that ray of hope was erased in four minutes thanks to Ndombele’s moment of inspiration.
The Frenchman had an orderly exchange with Steven Bergwijn, who opened it up for his teammate to run.
It was a nice pass, but it left Ndombele with a seemingly impossible angle from which to score, if he had to shoot at all.
But that’s exactly what he did, lifting the ball over Ramsdale with the outside of his right foot and somehow managed to drop it at the far post.
The impressive blow capped the midfielder’s comeback with Mourinho over the past 15 months.
The £ 65 million star looked poised for the exit door as the latest period was largely overlooked.
However, he has earned Mourinho this period to become one of the best and most important Spurs players, capable of moments of wit, and none better than this.
It was beautiful to watch and it left you wanting more, knowing what this Spurs attack is capable of.
Their fingers crossed and the man in charge of the team felt the same.
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