Man United draw with Tottenham

Sport
Louis van Gaal blamed his Manchester United side’s subdued second-half performance in their 0-0 draw against Tottenham Hotspur on the congested Christmas schedule.

Louis van Gaal blamed his Manchester United side’s subdued second-half performance in their 0-0 draw against Tottenham Hotspur on the congested Christmas schedule.

United dominated the first half at White Hart Lane, but fell off the pace after the break as both teams failed to find a breakthrough.

The fixture came less than 48 hours after the final whistle was blown on United’s 3-1 win over Newcastle United on Boxing Day and Van Gaal admitted his players had run out of steam.

He said: “I have said one month ago what I think about this (the Christmas period). It is scientifically proven that the body cannot recover within 48 hours.

“When you, as an FA, allow that, to play matches so close together, you see what it is like. The second half was much different to the first half, not only for Manchester United, but also for Tottenham Hotpsur.

The draw extended United’s unbeaten run to nine matches, but two points dropped represented a blow to their renewed hopes of challenging for the Premier League title.

It was a repeat of their inability to defeat a 10-man Aston Villa side on December 20 and although Van Gaal expects his side to improve in the new year, he said the result at White Hart Lane was proof that they are not yet ready to be champions.

Meanwhile, Chelsea were forced to settle for a 1-1 draw at Southampton as they failed to find a late winner at St Mary’s. The result also ends a sequence of three successive victories for Jose Mourinho’s men but is enough to ensure that Chelsea will start 2015 clear of Manchester City at the top of the table.

Manchester City threw away a two-goal lead to draw 2-2 with struggling Burnley at the City of Manchester Stadium on Sunday afternoon.

The champions had appeared on course for a club-record 10th successive win in all competitions when they led 2-0 at half-time thanks to goals from David Silva and Fernandinho.

However, the visitors caused a huge shock after the break by drawing level following strikes from firstly George Boyd, albeit from an offside position, followed by a sensational Ashley Barnes goal nine minutes from time to hand the Clarets a deserved share of the spoils.

— SkySports