Senegal breezes past Qatar as hosts eliminated from the World CupSunday’s version of Arsenal vs Manchester United, a pulsating 3-2 Gunners win at the Emirates Stadium, taught the Premier League a new yet familiar lesson. The Arsenal-Manchester United rivalry is very much back, as fans and neutrals alike will dream of this fixture growing to become what it was earlier this century.
WATCH ARSENAL v MANCHESTER UNITED FULL MATCH REPLAYBut Erik ten Hag’s Manchester United showed grit after being pegged back vs Crystal Palace in midweek, fighting through weariness before coming up just short. The Red Devils’ 39 points are behind third-place Newcastle United on goal differential. [ MORE: How to watch Premier League in USA] Arsenal vs Manchester United rivalry properly reborn (or at least reinvigorated)We needed this.
4 vs Crystal Palace at Old Trafford. United goes to Nottingham Forest in a League Cup semifinal first leg on Wednesday, hosts Reading on Saturday in the FA Cup, then welcomes Forest for a Feb. 1 second leg. Mikel Arteta reaction“It doesn’t get much better than that after a derby, to come here and win it in that way makes it even better.
The scrap between Bruno Fernandes and Gabriel Magalhaes gave us hints of Roy Keane and Patrick Vieira (at different positions, of course) and the fire in the eyes of goal scorers Marcus Rashford and Bukayo Saka in particular showed us what it can mean to score a big goal in this fixture. What would this have looked like with Casemiro, Gabriel Jesus, and Diogo Dalot? More, please. Arsenal project still a bit of ahead of Man UnitedErik ten Hag doesn’t have all of his pieces and the distance between the two sides may not be a gulf but it’s still noticeable.
…. Mentally and emotionally we were really composed and determined at the same time. We never panicked and we kept believing, doing the same things even better than before. “You can talk about maturity, but it was about belief and quality, to show the perseverance to take the game where we wanted. I’m delighted and thank you to the crowd. ”Follow @NicholasMendolaArsenal vs Manchester United video highlights: Arsenal 2-2 Man UnitedMarcus Rashford goal video: Man United takes 1-0 lead (17′)Eddie Nketiah goal video: Granit Xhaka gets fifth PL assist this season (24′)Bukayo Saka goal video: Arsenal star delivers fantastic goal from distance (53′)Lisandro Martinez goal video: Desperate header pops loose ball over the line (59′)Eddie Nketiah goal video: Deft touch delivers Arsenal win (90′) MADNESS! Eddie Nketiah comes through in a MASSIVE way.
Stars of the ShowGranit XhakaBruno FernandesBukayo SakaMarcus RashfordEddie Nketiahfotmob. com’s matchcenterWhat’s next? Arsenal’s off to Manchester City for an FA Cup fourth round match on Friday before a Premier League visit to Everton on Feb. 4. Man United has three cup games before its next Premier League outing, which will come Feb.
Even when accounting for home-pitch advantage, injuries to Diogo Dalot and Anthony Martial, and — most critically — Casemiro’s suspension, Arsenal was ready to go from the jump and United spent much of its day adapting to the hosts’ dictation of the game. Thomas Partey and Granit Xhaka limited still-influential Bruno Fernandes, and the Gunners had well over half of the ball plus a significant advantage in shot attempts, and expected goals.
[ MORE: Arsenal vs Man United player ratings]Eddie Nketiah completed his brace with a 90th-minute flicked winner, joining Bukayo Saka’s terrific goal on the score sheet and overshadowing Man United goals from Marcus Rashford and Lisandro Martinez. The Gunners just keep on rolling as Mikel Arteta’s first-place youngsters have beaten bitter rivals Tottenham and now age-old foes Man United in one week’s time, collecting 50 points to stretch its table lead to five points on Man City with a match-in-hand.
But Ten Hag’s defending did not allow many chances to a gifted team that needed a remarkable goal from Saka on its route to a point — there are questions about the backs on Nketiah’s marker — and Raphael Varane has been a bit of a cheat code when healthy. United’s a step behind the Gunners right now, and Nketiah’s winner was deserved and decisive, but sign us up for front row seats when these fixtures come around next season.
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