'I kissed Rodrigo and said thanks' - De Zerbi 'liked' Spurs red card

What the report says

Tottenham Hotspur manager Roberto de Zerbi said he welcomed the reaction shown by Rodrigo Bentancur after the midfielder was sent off in Tottenham’s 1-1 Premier League draw with Manchester United at Old Trafford. Bentancur received a red card in the 78th minute after a confrontation with Luke Shaw, with Tottenham trailing 1-0 at the time. De Zerbi described the incident as a mistake, but said the team needed more fight and character as they tried to recover from a difficult start to the season.

Tottenham still rescued a point through Dominic Solanke’s stoppage-time equaliser, despite playing the closing stages with 10 men. The result did little to change their league position, as Spurs remained without a win after six matches and were still in the relegation zone. The club have struggled for goals and results despite spending heavily on new signings in the summer.

De Zerbi also used the match to argue that Tottenham had shown signs of greater unity and intensity. He said the performance suggested the squad was beginning to act more like a team, both in attack and defence. The comments came as Spurs looked to steady their season ahead of upcoming matches against Coventry and Chelsea. BBC Sport’s report placed the incident in the context of Tottenham’s wider early-season struggles and the pressure on the club to turn a large rebuild into a more coherent side.