Arsenal throw down the gauntlet.
On a cold afternoon, as the two teams in red-hot form met, sparks were expected. An effervescent Emirates stadium was expectant while travelling United fans wanted another glazed tile on the road to long-awaited glory.
After what seems like an eternity, Arsenal and Manchester United have looked their part. In a decade of dominance by City and others, these two perennial heavyweights were dropping down the abyss, and fast at that. Burdened by unfulfilled expectations and unable to match their own sparkling history, they struggled. Amidst the growing power of the others, they were labelled as pretenders, with both impatient fans and capricious silver-tongued experts writing epitaphs season after season.
This season has been different. Arsenal, who started their journey to redemption earlier than United, have taken big strides. Manchester United has stepped onto a promising path recently and seems to have an assured gait now.
The managers lined up their squads as expected. Ten Haag had to do without Casemiro, who missed due to what, in hindsight, looked like a silly yellow card against Palace. Arteta had no reason to tweak a winning formation. The new signing, Leandro Trossard, appeared on the bench.
It was billed as a decisive match, and a win was imperative for both teams for different reasons. United are chasing down City and Arsenal to keep the chasm open at the top.
Arsenal fast , Manchester United solid
Arsenal started, as they do these days, fast and furious. Pressing high, despite the threat of the counterattack. United waited patiently, not giving away much. As both the teams settled down, things started stirring, ever so quietly and subtly. Saka on the right wing was now getting bolder, and Shaw, who tried hustling him slowly but distinctly, shifted to try and block him. Zinchenko perked up, materialising everywhere like a genie. Odegaard was floating around as usual.
United, on their part, was also transforming; Rashford was pushing into the middle, Bruno went wide and cut in, while Varane and Martinez were solid. While Arsenal looked better, United opened the scoring. Rashford cut into the top of the box and unleashed a blinder into Ramsdale’s near corner.
Arsenal responded in a few minutes after a delectable cross from Xhaka was deposited into the net with a towering header by Nketiah. Halftime found both of them equal.
A few minutes into the second half, Saka produced a piece of magic. Pushing into the now distant and back-pedalling Shaw, he paused for a breath and uncorked a wicked left foot past De Gea. The youngster just can’t go wrong these days, even if he tried. United scored again, this time through a scramble following a corner as Martinez, with a bandaged head, bravely nodded a looping header into the net. It was all even again.
Then it happened; it was great to watch, and it was too evident to be missed. The young Gunners displayed why they are where they are. They pushed further; Zinchenko was almost in the midfield, and Tomiyasu, who came on for White at halftime, was almost a winger. It was overloaded everywhere—on the flanks, in the middle, and on the inside of the box. Partey, Saliba, and Gabriel held back to guard against the counter. Arsenal looked like the only team that could score. Martinez nicked the ball from Xhaka’s feet in the box, and Eriksen deflected at least two goal-bound shots. United was suddenly overrun.
Manchester United throw in the towel
In what was the most telling moment, the camera panned to the United bench and caught Ten Haag speaking into Fred’s ears as he brought him on. The penny had dropped. Garnacho as a substitute would have been the boxer's uppercut, and Fred would have been the defensive face block of a timid boxer. Ten Haag had to choose, and he chose safety. A relentless Arsenal team knew they had United where they wanted them to be.
With added time just to begin, Trossard who came on late and looked good enough to make an impact drove through the retreating United midfield and laid it off to the free-floating genie Zinchenko who magically appeared this time deep on the left wing. A flat cross , and a melee in the box later, the ball found its way to Nketiah, who guided it in, past a De Gea suspended mid-air. Ten Haag for once, in the impressive run he has had , seemed to have blinked at the wrong time.
Emirates was roaring and three points were gained and a point made.
If ever a statistic can speak, the attack chart below tells a story…..
In what probably was the best game in the League this season, both United and Arsenal displayed their character and a promise of more. In the end, it was just the unbridled energy and the fearlessness of youth that probably took Arsenal ahead.
They say fools rush in where angels fear to tread, but then these days, it is the fools who rush in who seem to go on to become angels………