Tottenham Hotspur earned back-to-back Premier League wins with a 1-0 home triumph over Manchester United.

Having beaten Brentford two weeks ago to end a seven-match winless run, Spurs earned their first victory at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium since early November.

James Maddison got the all-important goal after just 13 minutes, turning in the rebound after Lucas Bergvall had a shot saved.

Alejandro Garnacho squandered a glorious chance shortly afterwards, with United unable to find an equaliser despite applying plenty of pressure.

The hosts move up to 12th in the table on 30 points, leapfrogging United, who sit one point and three places below them in 15th.

How the match unfolded

Spurs managed to survive a flurry of early United chances; Rasmus Hojlund’s low drive was pushed away by Guglielmo Vicario, with the Italian – back from injury after three months out – then palming Garnacho’s curler clear in the next phase.

United were punished just moments later at the other end as Andre Onana pushed Bergvall’s low strike straight to Maddison, who coolly fired in.

Garnacho should have levelled 10 minutes later, but he blazed over the crossbar under no pressure after Bruno Fernandes’ clever lay-off.

The Argentinian led the United charge in the second half, twice forcing Vicario into action, first from a tight angle on the right side of the area, then with a low strike at the near post.

Joshua Zirkzee glanced a header wide of the far post, while Djed Spence slid in to block Hojlund’s shot after Onana had kept out Dejan Kulusevki and sparked a quick counter.

But United were unable to make that pressure tell, leaving Ruben Amorim to face up to another demoralising defeat.

Postecoglou finds relief

Spurs stopped the rot in the Premier League last time out with a 2-0 win over Brentford, but they found themselves back under pressure after a miserable week saw them crash out of both the EFL Cup and the FA Cup.

They had not won back-to-back league matches since September, but some huge injury boosts, including the returns of Vicario and Maddison to the starting line-up, lifted the mood ahead of kick-off.

Vicario’s absence has been keenly felt and he showed his worth after just 10 minutes, making an impressive double save to deny Hojlund and Garnacho, while he was also sent scrambling by a Zirkzee effort that fizzed wide of the post.

Maddison, meanwhile, marked his return with a goal but also provided a spark in midfield throughout the first half.

Elsewhere, new boy Mathys Tel – a reported United target before joining Spurs – was a constant threat and was unlucky not to mark his Premier League debut with a goal as Onana kept him out.

Ange Postecoglou has never lost to United in the Premier League, and Spurs' third win over them this campaign has certainly helped to ease the pressure.

However, the Spurs head coach knows they need to build some momentum with struggling Ipswich Town up next.

Amorim’s injury headache

While Spurs’ injury crisis has shown some signs of easing, United now have mounting problems of their own, with Kobbie Mainoo, Manuel Ugarte and Lisandro Martinez all out.

Considering their problems in the final third this term though, perhaps the biggest blow dealt to them was that concerning Amad, who Amorim conceded before the match could miss the rest of the season with an ankle injury.

In an attempt to end their struggle for goals, Amorim opted to use both Hojlund and Zirkzee together, a decision that might have paid off early on, if not for Vicario’s reflexes.

United drew a blank for the 19th time in the first half of a Premier League match this season, though that should not have been the case as Garnacho was handed a chance on a silver platter, only to fire wastefully over.

With Victor Lindelof the lone senior figure available to Amorim off the bench, the head coach had to rally his starters.

They came out stronger after the break, but Garnacho was unable to atone for his earlier miss as Vicario continually thwarted him.

It is a second consecutive Premier League defeat for United – with an FA Cup victory over Leicester City sandwiched in between – and things do not get easier with a trip to resurgent Everton next Saturday.