Tottenham’s Christian Eriksen scored within 11 seconds on Wednesday to make Alexis Sanchez miserable on his Premier League debut for new club, Manchester United.
The build-up to Wednesday’s matches was dominated by late moves in the transfer window but Spurs ensured the focus switched back to the pitch immediately, stunning Jose Mourinho’s men with a performance full of attacking verve.
The 2-0 defeat for United realistically ends any lingering hopes they may have harboured of catching runaway leaders City.
Mourinho signed Sanchez this month to bolster his attacking options but Spurs caught the visitors cold at a packed Wembley, Eriksen opening the scoring from the kick-off following a long ball from inside the Spurs half.
The goal, timed at 10.48 seconds, was the first United have conceded in 2018 but despite some bright moments of their own they were 2-0 down just before the half-hour after Phil Jones lashed the ball into his own net.
Tottenham, who announced the signing of Lucas Moura from Paris Saint-Germain shortly before kick-off at Wembley, were a constant threat and had multiple chances to stretch their lead.
Mourinho threw on Juan Mata and Marouane Fellaini in the 63rd minute but bizarrely took Fellaini off just seven minutes later, replacing him with Ander Herrera. The Belgium international took of his shirt and marched straight down the tunnel.
The impressive win for Spurs puts them right back at the heart of the hunt for a Champions League qualification spot, just two points behind fourth-placed Liverpool, while United are a further three points ahead in second place.
Mauricio Pochettino’s men were further buoyed by the defeat for Chelsea, who fielded only Pedro up front, showing their need for more firepower. Callum Wilson, Junior Stanislas and Nathan Ake scored the goals for Bournemouth.
