Thanks for your company. Read David Hytner’s match report:

Paul Pogba speaks and, believe it or not, says Rashford’s goal was straight off the training ground. “It was very important to win because it was a big test and we carry on our winning run,” he says. “It is a great ball but we have been training on this. We were preparing this, we knew it would be a very difficult game and we knew that we could hurt them on the counterattacks. It is what we were working on last week, they have patterns they are used to doing and we knew that it was the key to create chances. Marcus made a great run and I tried to give him the perfect pass and he helped. We are all enjoying playing together.”

Asked what’s changed under Ole Gunnar Solskjær, Pogba replies: “Um, I would say I am enjoying, I am enjoying playing football. It was really difficult with the system, the tactics that we used to play. I like to play more attacking, pressing and play high, and I missed the lucidity when I had to defend. Defending is not my best attribute. I think my position [today] is where I feel most comfortable. The manager has told me to get in the box and score goals, and the best example is Frank Lampard, who scored a lot of goals and got chances.”

A couple of post-match stats to indulge in, via Opta:

• Manchester United were eight points behind Arsenal when Ole Gunnar Solskjær became their caretaker manager on 19 December but are now level on points

• The only top-flight league match in which David de Gea has made more saves than he did versus Tottenham Hotspur today (11) was against Arsenal at the Emirates on 2 December 2017 (14)

• David de Gea made 11 saves for Manchester United vs Tottenham Hotspur today; the most saves he’s made in a top-flight league match without conceding a goal

Some Manchester United reaction. David de Gea, who made 11 fine saves, says: “The manager has brought some happiness, the team is very strong now and we know how to control the games and create chances. It is very good for us, it is the real Manchester United. We controlled the first half but in the second they put a lot of pressure but we defended well and got the three points. It was a great game, we are very, very happy.” Marcus Rashford, the goalscorer, adds: “This was the hardest we have had to work for a result [under Solskjær]. We played a slightly different system but against a team like this it was needed. We prepared different, the tactics changed but to beat the top teams you have to adapt.”

90+4 min: There is almost a late sting in the tail for United, but Kane cannot reach Llorente’s lofted through ball. Spurs have been aching for an equaliser, but United are very nearly there. A fifth straight win is seconds away from their grasp.

90+4 min: United clear their lines. Can they cling on?

90+3 min: Shaw does really well to block Trippier’s low ball into the box as Spurs get everybody forward. Lamela will swing in the corner ...

90+2 min: Paul Pogba is replaced by Scott McTominay.

90+1 min: Herrera has a timely bout of cramp. Luke Shaw gives him a helping hand, after the Spaniard had played in Lukaku, whose shot was blocked by Davies.

90 min: There will be a minimum of four minutes added time.

89 min: Llorente spurns a golden opportunity! He actually does really well to take the sting out of the cross from the right with his first touch, before prodding at goal with his second. De Gea watches it all the way and cradles the ball like a newborn baby. Llorente has his head in his hands but it was not a sitter.

88 min: It’s attack v defence, Spurs v United.

86 min: Another instinctive stop by David de Gea! Llorente did well, cushioning a header into the path of Kane just inside the edge of the box. When Kane wriggled away from Lindelof to earn himself a yard of space, he powered at goal but de Gea was equal to it once more, with his right foot this time sweeping away the danger. There will be few arguments over the man of the match.

85 min: It’s kitchen-sink time. United are camped inside their own half.

83 min: A plucky foul by Rashford gifts Spurs a free-kick deep inside their own half but Tottenham cannot make the most of it. Ander Herrera cuts the ball out with a cute interception before Alderweireld returns the favour, with United winning a free-kick which David de Gea will wallop downfield.

82 min: Llorente, just on, is pulled up for a foul on Ashley Young. United attempt to calm things down, with Dalot replacing Jesse Lingard, who had just walked to the very far side of the Wembley pitch. Lovely stuff.

80 min: Fernando Llorente replaces Harry Winks. Down in the United dugout, Mike Phelan reacts and orders Diego Dalot to be readied.

78 min: Fed up and frustrated at Spurs’ failure to breach United’s back line, Harry Kane rushes an effort at goal and it sails towards Row Z.

77 min: Dele Alli is grounded after a poor tackle by Pogba, whose left boot was very high. The United midfielder vehemently disagrees and is booked for kicking the ball away. A touch of petulance after his magnificence a little earlier.

75 min: Solskjær is deep in conversation with Mike Phelan, frantically trying to work-up a plan to stop Eriksen wreaking further havoc.

74 min: Another chance for Spurs, another David de Gea save. Christian Eriksen crafted the opening, lofting a cute pass in for Dele Alli but the midfielder cannot beat the United goalkeeper. After composing himself, nudging the ball on to his right foot, Alli failed to wrap the ball into either corner, instead powering the ball towards the centre of de Gea’s goal. And, of course, the United goalkeeper inevitably repelled his effort. Spurs have done everything but score.

73 min: Solksjaer summons Lukaku in place of Martial. United appear to have switched to a 4-3-3, with Lukaku flanked by Rashford and Lingard.

71 min: Yet another fine stop by de Gea, this time from Harry Kane’s curled free-kick. This was a more routine stop, but nevertheless.

70 min: De Gea with an absolutely sublime save! The goalkeeper keeps Alderweireld’s effort out at the near post, clearing the ball with his left leg. The Spurs defender did well, beating Rashford to Trippier’s corner. But then it was all about whether de Gea could do anything about it – and the United keeper came up trumps. Again. He has been in inspired form.

69 min: And now Son has a go, but Lingard blocks his effort. The ball loops away for a Spurs corner as the hosts continue to pile on the pressure.

68 min: Eriksen plays a neat give-and-go with Harry Kane but the striker cannot get his feet sorted or fashion an effort at goal. Spurs are beginning to turn it on.

66 min: Eriksen has a pop, but his right-footed effort drops a couple of yards wide of the post. Spurs have gone through the gears a bit and are looking much more dangerous. As for United, they could do with taking some of the heat out of this game.

65 min: De Gea with another great save! Kane frees Dele Alli but, with Nemanja Matic for company, he fires straight at the Manchester United goalkeeper. United survive and then Ander Herrera hauls down Eriksen on the edge of the box. Spurs win a free-kick, 25 yards from goal. It’s Eriksen and Trippier territory.

64 min: Spurs pour forward, but Eriksen’s shot from distance is too ambitious.

63 min: Vertonghen lashes a high ball straight out of play, causing Pochettino to grimace. But United fail to seize the territory and Spurs counter ...

61 min: Lloris prevents Pogba from doubling United’s lead. The midfielder powers a venomous effort goalwards but the Spurs captain is equal to it, despite the ball taking a nick off Ben Davies. It was brilliant buildup play by Anthony Martial who unselfishly drove into the box before centring the ball to tee up his team-mate.

60 min: Lamela must do better – the Argentine ends up shouldering the ball out play instead of burying a header beyond de Gea. The ball in was again clever by Trippier but after Kane failed to reach it, there was Lamela behind him, though the Spurs substitute seemed to be caught cold.

58 min: De Gea saves from Kane’s header! Spurs pass up another opportunity as Kane nods his header into the ground after beating Phil Jones at the front post. A quick corner by Lamela fooled United, with Eriksen’s delivery as wicked as ever. Kane does well, but is punished for making too clean a contact if anything. De Gea with another instinctive save, but he will feel it was a routine one.

57 min: Spurs pressure United into a mistake, as Young slides a wayward pass out of play. Tottenham try to conjure up an equaliser, with Eriksen winning a corner out of Pogba, who does well tracking his man after Trippier freed the Dane.

55 min: Another alert stop by Lloris! Pogba follows up on his own shot, rampaging through on goal after his initial shot was blocked by Alderweireld. It was not pretty but Pogba bulldozed his way through, before outmuscling Jan Vertonghen to dink an effort over the goalkeeper. Lloris is equal to it, though.

54 min: An almighty “Come on you Spurs!” echoes around Wembley as United patiently probe in search of an opening. Ashley Young has had a busy start to this second half, at both ends.

53 min: Lloris handles Pogba’s header! It was a lovely cross by Young, whose corner was headed away by Davies. When the ball came back in, Pogba held his ground to power at goal, but in the end his effort is too tame to trouble Lloris. The Spurs goalkeeper gathers and back come United, via Shaw.

52 min: Pogba buys a corner out of Ben Davies ...

51 min: Davies clatters into the back of Ashley Young, and United win a free-kick deep inside their own half. Eriksen and Alli are beginning to pull the strings for Spurs, though. Tottenham have started this second half far sleeker.

49 min: And now de Gea saves from Dele Alli! The midfielder rises highest to meet Trippier’s hanging ball and the Manchester United goalkeeper gets down well low to his left to push the ball away with both hands. This is much better, much crisper from Tottenham. Alli then scythes down Pogba on halfway, earning United a little respite. Whatever Pochettino said at half-time, it seems to have worked.

48 min: De Gea makes a superb save to deny Harry Kane! It was a wonderful move by Tottenham, who carved open the United defence, with Alli fizzing in a cute pass into the striker after intricate play with Son. Kane eludes Phil Jones but a brilliant stop by de Gea denies the England skipper with his feet.

47 min: United break forward nicely, with Lingard helping the ball on neatly. But Martial cannot fashion a clear-cut chance.

46 min: Lingard gets the second half under way. Spurs seem to have switched formation, with Eriksen joining Winks deep in midfield.

Some half-time reading before the restart at Wembley:

An intriguing half-time stat for your perusal, courtesy of Opta: no player has been involved in more Premier League goals since Solskjær became caretaker manager at Manchester United than Paul Pogba (eight – four goals, four assists).

45 min: There will be two added minutes. The delirious United fans will serenade their team throughout the next 120 seconds or so.

43 min: Erik Lamela replaces the injured Moussa Sissoko.

42 min: Trippier makes a brilliant challenge on Anthony Martial, and then Frenchman retaliates after the Tottenham defender refuses to lash the ball out of play after Sissoko goes to ground once more. It’s handbags, and Mike Dean’s soon along to hoover up any bad energy.

40 min: Sissoko looked a spent force, but the powerful action man is back on the pitch to a warm ovation from the home faithful. He is limping, though.

39 min: Sissoko is intent on running it off. Let’s see.

38 min: Ah! Moussa Sissoko is down, appearing to strain his hamstring or groin after switching on the afterburners to leave Luke Shaw in his wake. Sissoko winces and he looks in trouble, with Spurs summoning Oliver Skipp to warm up.

37 min: A swell of boos from home supporters as David de Gea takes an age to take a goal-kick. Time-wasting, already? United have got a bit sloppy in midfield. Up in the posh seats, Dimitar Berbatov is sat alongside Ledley King.

35 min: Kane does well to flash a ball across the box but Spurs have nobody there to meet it. The striker managed to hold off Lindelof before forcing the ball across goal. Alli and Eriksen arrived too late.

34 min: Harry Winks lets fly from distance – and it sails miles over. But this is much better from Spurs, who appear more confident after a cagey start.

33 min: Young slows things down from a throw-in, as United attempt to steal back control. Pogba and co have undoubtedly been stifled in the last few minutes.

32 min: Spurs seemed to have hushed United in the last 10 minutes or so, with Eriksen, Son and Kane growing into the game. United are being forced to repel Spurs more often now.

30 min: Kane has the ball in the net – but his goal’s disallowed! Trippier plays a delightful ball in towards the back post, where Dele Alli meets it, with the ball bobbling goalwards off his knee. At that point, Kane gets involved, prodding home but, before he has the chance to wheel away, the linesman’s flag halts celebrations. It all stemmed from a silly foul, a tug at the shirt, by Matic on Son on halfway. He has not been involved too often, but when he has, Trippier has been lethal.

28 min: Kane takes an age to free Ben Davies down the left. When Davies eventually picks it up, he nudges the ball inside to Son, who slaloms beyond Matic before teeing up Eriksen, whose shot is blocked. And then frankly every Spurs player has a go, but United stand firm before Son is flagged offside second time round. United’s appetite to quickly quell the slightest whiff of danger is clear.

26 min: Moussa Sissoko does well to niggle back at Pogba and nick the ball away. The Spurs midfielder has grown into this team in recent weeks and months; he has been one of their most consistent performers of late.

25 min: Spurs, so often dominant in possession, have been made to work really hard for the ball. They are not having it all their own way, far from it, with United looking deadly on the counter. It is easy to see why Solksjaer opted for pace over power – and Rashford over Romelu Lukaku – on this evidence.

23 min: Spurs dance into the six-yard box – but Alli gets caught in two minds at the crucial moment. Eriksen kickstarted the move, spreading the ball out to Son, via Ben Davies. Son has certainly been lively when involved so far. The forward jinked inside and then out before feeding Alli, who drove towards the byline. But Alli ends up trickling a ball into Kane which is eventually cleared. Trippier delivers the corner, but Kane’s shot cannot breach the crowd of United shirts. And United will counter through Rashford.

21 min: United look a different beast to a few weeks ago, fizzing the ball about with confidence. They are quietly probing, with Spurs struggling to get close enough to panic United. Rashford, over the top, looks a real threat.

19 min: Davies and Lindelof collide, but it is just a coming together. Spurs have not seen quite so much of the ball after making an early impression.

18 min: Harry Kane clears the United corner as Spurs pull everyone back to get their house in order. United, fresh from a Dubai camp, look full of energy. There is no bus in sight.

16 min: Matic slides in Rashford – but is flagged offside. The forward failed to hold his run, after eluding the Spurs defence who do look vulnerable. They seem unsure who should be marking who, with Vertonghen and Davies looking at one another to pick up the pieces. And now United win another corner after Martial forces a save out of Lloris from an acute angle. United are in the mood.

15 min: Young’s cross flies into the heart of the Spurs six-yard box but Sissoko clears. Spurs attempt to get back on track but United seize back possession. Pogba, Herrera and Matic are winning the midfield battle at present.

14 min: And now Pogba buys United a corner out of Alderweireld ...

13 min: United are suddenly in on the counter again, this time through Martial after Matic cleared Trippier’s corner. Ben Davies climbed highest but could not direct a header on target. United look electric on the break, though Martial failed to control the ball after being released by a revved-up Rashford.

12 min: End-to-end stuff, with Son teeing up Trippier to deliver another cross. Spurs have to settle for a corner ...

11 min: Lloris saves comfortably from Rashford! United pour forward again and, slipped in down the channel on the counter, Rashford is forced wide and, in the end, his effort is relatively tame. No problem for Lloris in the Spurs goal.

10 min: Lingard shoots high and wide! Pogba floated a ball towards the back stick and when Young fizzes it back in, Lingard leans back and drives over after collecting the ball from Toby Alderweireld’s headed clearance.

8 min: Son does superbly – but Harry Winks drags wide! The Spurs forward is slipped in behind a static Phil Jones with a marvellous sweeping ball by Eriksen and, once he gets to the edge of the 18-yard box, Son does well to hold the ball up before playing a wonderful reverse pass in for Winks, with Jones again left for dead. The Spurs midfielder is one-on-one with David de Gea from the angle, but his execution is ultimately wayward. United survive the resulting corner. That was a warning, if United indeed needed one.

6 min: Kane goes to ground after tangling with Pogba, with the Frenchman lucky not to be pulled up for a clumsy challenge on the striker. Then a collision with Luke Shaw goes against Kane. Manchester United hammer it long in search of Rashford. Solskjær jumps down into his technical area, drawing the Wembley arch with his hands, presumably urging the ball to played quicker over the top.

5 min: Eriksen picks the ball up just outside the Spurs half, gets his head up and attempts to slide in Kane down the left. Eriksen frees the England captain but the ball runs a little too quickly for him to latch on to it. Spurs will re-build.

4 min: Spurs build nicely but Trippier thrashes a wild cross-field ball out of touch in search of Ben Davies. Sir Alex Ferguson is among the crowd at Wembley.

3 min: United attempt to float the ball into Jesse Lingard over the top, but Hugo Lloris reads it and smothers. Lingard is playing close to Rashford, as a No 10.

2 min: Kieran Trippier whips in a dangerous cross from the right flank, with the overlap of Moussa Sissoko forcing Luke Shaw to stand off the Spurs full-back. But his delivery is too powerful if anything, flashing beyond Harry Kane at the back post.

1 min: Matic does well to oust Christian Eriksen aside on halfway after Spurs build down the left through Alli and Kane. United snuff it out.

Ashley Young is geeing up his United troops, as he and his team-mates proceed to do the formalities of the pre-match handshakes.

The teams are in the tunnel at Wembley. Kick-off is imminent.

Solskjær speaks. “We have had a great week training over in Dubai, we had some time to get the tactics right and the principles laid down,” he says. “When you sign for Manchester United these are the games you look forward to, walking out a Wembley for a final or to play against Spurs, a big team at the moment that are flying. It’s a big challenge for the boys. We are playing against one of the best strikers in the world, you have got Son who is unbelievable and Eriksen is one of the best playmakers around. We have got to defend but we have to attack with balance. The surface does not look the best and we know we have to protect the space behind us.” Pochettino, meanwhile, has been bizarrely effusive about running out at the national stadium. “I think every single game at Wembley is a special occasion to enjoy, the best place in the world to play football, for us. We cannot find any excuses, we need to be ready, we must be ready to challenge Manchester United and I think we are so confident that we are going to match their motivation and freshness. I am not worried.”

With Spurs back at Wembley, Mauricio Pochettino has of course been speaking about the need to move into the new White Hart Lane sharpish. Pronto. Their home game against Crystal Palace on 16 March looks the most likely suspect to usher in a new era in north London. “To move to our new stadium will be massive, massive for our fans,” Pochettino says. “I cannot wait to move. I told Daniel [Levy], he always listens and arrives in my office and says ‘do you know what will be good, to move there or not?’. I said 200% we have to move there as soon as possible.”

David de Gea or Hugo Lloris? Paul Pogba or Christian Eriksen in midfield? And Harry Kane or Marcus Rashford up top?

Team news news: Romelu Lukaku is named among the substitutes for Manchester United as Ole Gunnar Solskjær opts for pace over power, with Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial preferred in attack. There are also starts for Jesse Lingard, in for Juan Mata, and Ashley Young. Alexis Sánchez, meanwhile, is absent altogether, sidelined through injury. For Tottenham, a boost in the shape of Jan Vertonghen, who returns to the Spurs back line after a thigh injury, paired alongside Toby Alderweireld. Ben Davies is favoured to Danny Rose at left-back by Mauricio Pochettino.