Despite public assurances from chairman Daniel Levy, Martin Jol goes into todays game knowing that his job rests on the results of the next few games. Though Levy hinted that he will give Jol until the end of the season, the board have backed themselves into such a position that if Jol's side were to suffer a heavy defeat this afternoon, the Dutchman's position would look extremely precarious.
Both Tottenham and United go into this fixture in the bottom half of the table and with injury worries. United will miss Wayne Rooney due to a foot injury and Cristiano Ronaldo due to suspension whilst Tottenham's injury crisis continues. Michael Dawson, Ledley King, Aaron Lennon and Younes Kaboul remain sidelined but left-back Gareth Bale managed an impressive run out for Wales against Bulgaria in midweek and may feature, though it is probably too early for the precociously talented player to start the game. Darren Bent, who scored his first goal in anger for the club last week is doubtful with a thigh injury whilst Dimitar Berbatov, subject of as much speculation as Martin Jol in the past week, may return.
So Jol goes into a game that could be so crucial to his continued tenure at the club without several key players. Unfortunately recent history against the biggest clubs in the country offer little solace for fans who won't be relishing this afternoon's game. In the three years since taking over as head coach, Jol has only seen his side beat one of the top four clubs once. That 2-1 victory against Chelsea last November did little to erase the memories of too many capitulations to the clubs that Daniel Levy is so eager for Tottenham to emulate. This problem is so acute that it arguably cost us a Champions League place in 05/06 and has undermined recent attempts to secure silverware in the cup competitions. That said, we have certainly improved against these clubs over the past few seasons and our performances in the previous two games at Old Trafford (a 1-1 draw and a 1-0 loss) will give Spurs fans hope that their side can get something out of todays match, especially with United having been so blunt in attack in these early stages of the season.
Under the circumstances getting a draw at Old Trafford would be a good result this afternoon. Tottenham will be fearful of a backlash from United who have played some excellent football over the past three game, despite not free-scoring. Though they lost last week's Manchester derby, they dominated vast swathes of the game, with only the profligacy of their strikers and a domineering performance from Micah Richards costing them a deserved win. Carlos Tevez, who was particularly wasteful, is guaranteed not to be so forgiving today.
Match Prediction - 2-1 United It would be blind and foolish of me to predict anything but a United win this afternoon. Both clubs are under pressure to perform but with Tottenham missing key players in defence and Paul Robinson hardly inspiring confidence, it is unlikely that they will be able to keep a clean sheet. Upfront we should cause them problems and a lot rest on Dimitar Berbatov's shoulders. If the Bulgarian plays then he must show more than he has in the two games he has sauntered about in this season. The key battle remains, perhaps, in midfield, where Jermaine Jenas will have to show more than he has in previous encounters with the top four clubs. With Paul Scholes in such fine form it is probably in this area that United will enjoy domination and it remains to be seen if any of our current midfield crop are up to the task of stopping him.