Ryan Giggs has claimed that Tottenham were too gung-ho in their approach against Manchester City last weekend.
The Manchester United legend believes manager Mauricio Pochettino played into City’s hands by committing too many players forward at Etihad Stadium.
Pep Guardiola’s side continued their remarkable run by demolishing Tottenham 4-1 with yet another scintillating display that prompted some bookmakers to pay out early on them winning the Premier League this season.
Giggs gave his verdict on Spurs’ approach as he explained why Manchester United do little to excite him under Jose Mourinho.
“In isolation, they’re doing OK,” he told the Times. “But when you bring [Manchester] City into it, it’s more difficult because City have been so good. If we had beaten them at Old Trafford, it would have been interesting to see how City reacted. United could have kicked on from that too. But it didn’t happen.”
Asked if United were too cautious in their recent defeat against City at Old Trafford? “You have to be so careful,” he added to the Times. “Look what happened to Tottenham on Saturday [losing 4-1 to City]. As a fan, I would have liked to have seen United go for it. Not just for entertainment but to get the crowd behind us. As it was, City got into their rhythm early on, the crowd went quiet and it’s very hard to get that back.”
“It has been disappointing in the big games this year. Liverpool was the killer because they weren’t in good form and United were flying. Then there was a lot of negativity and I don’t think we’ve recovered from that game.”
OPINION
Pochettino has been praised to the skies for the remarkable transformation he has overseen at Tottenham in the last few seasons. With success comes expectation, and the fans expect their team to be more effective on the road against marquee opponents. It is a worrying trend that Spurs are consistently losing to their top-six rivals. Giggs wanted his beloved United to be more adventurous against Guardiola’s brilliant team, but felt Pochettino went too far in allowing an open encounter, just as Jurgen Klopp had done earlier in the season. In his defence, the Argentine could point out that he was unable to call upon his best centre-back in Toby Alderweireld as well as the suspended Davinson Sanchez.