Manchester United travelled south to London earlier today for their fourth match of the Premier League season against Arsenal. The rivalry with Arsenal dates back to the 1990s and hasn’t really cooled off over the years. Both of these clubs have title aspirations and top-4 aspirations, so even though this fixture was early in the season, it carried a lot of significance. United manager Erik ten Hag knew that the Red Devils’ away form against the top teams needed to improve, and this match was a great chance to do so. Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta had his side off a good start, but he knew United would be a very tough test even at home.
The first half was fairly even, in a way. Arsenal were the better team going forward. They were creating chances, but their attacks were being consistently repelled by a dogged United defense. Left back Diogo Dalot and right back Aaron Wan-Bissaka were doing well at shutting down Arsenal’s talented wingers. United had more of the possession in the first 45, but their possession was usually in their own half. Keeper Andre Onana was doing very well with playing the ball out from the back, which is the precise reason he was brought in. Interestingly, United scored with their first shot on target on 27 minutes.
Midfielder Christian Eriksen picked up a loose ball in his own half and brought it forward into space before finding striker Marcus Rashford ahead of him on the left wing. Rashford was given space by the Arsenal back four to cut inside the box onto his right foot, and he unleashed a vicious shot that Gunners keeper Aaron Ramsey could only parry onto the inside of the post and into the goal. Emirates Stadium was stunned, given that goal was very much against the run of play. Happy to see Rashford finally off the mark for the season. He was our leading scorer last season and he needs to get back to that form. 1-0 United!
The celebrations in the away fans’ section were short-lived though, as Arsenal were level just 35 seconds after the restart. Arsenal captain and midfielder Martin Ødegaard was given too much space on the edge of the box by the United defense after being found by winger Gabriel Martinelli. He let a long-range shot go that was hit with power and placement, and Onana couldn’t get to it in time. Two goals in roughly a minute electrified a match that had been somewhat dull up to that point. Oddly though, those were the two most notable moments of the first half. Two moments of madness in a sea of drudgery. It was 1-1 at halftime with all to play for.
The second half was similarly slow-paced for the first 25-30 minutes or so. United were creating more chances, but Arsenal were holding them off effectively and creating the odd chance or two of their own. Arsenal wanted a penalty when striker Kai Havertz tumbled in the box under a challenge from AWB, and referee Anthony Taylor pointed to the spot. After a VAR check though, the penalty call was rescinded. There wasn’t a lot of contact, if any, on Havertz before he went down, and Taylor deemed it a non-penalty. More on Taylor below. Arsenal then went close when winger Bukayo Saka got on the end of a cross at close range, but his shot was straight at Onana.
A troubling issue for United were the injuries sustained by center backs Lisandro Martinez and Victor Lindelof as the second half wore on. They were already without center back Raphael Varane and left back Luke Shaw due to injury, so options were extremely thin. It was eventually the out-of-favor Harry Maguire and 35-year-old Jonny Evans in central defense for United towards the end. The injuries affected this result, no doubt.
The Red Devils thought they had a winner however on 88 minutes when substitute winger Alejandro Garnacho was put through on goal. He carried through the attacking third, after which he slotted home past Ramsey to the ecstasy of United supporters in the away end. However, Taylor and VAR needed to have their say again. Somehow, mystifyingly, the replay official deemed Garnacho to have been offside when he received the ball, despite him appearing to be level or even slightly behind the last Arsenal defender. The goal was ruled out and we continued at 1-1.
Arsenal earned a corner in the 5th minute of stoppage time, and the ball was swung into the box towards the back post. Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice was there, and he bundled home a deflected finish past Onana to give Arsenal a lead they wouldn’t surrender. It was a heartbreaker for the Red Devils, but they didn’t give up. They threw men forward for an equalizer, and were likely denied a penalty when substitute striker (and United debutante) Rasmus Højlund was wrestled to the ground in the box. Curiously, no replay was shown on TV feeds of this incident. A VAR check was supposedly conducted, but no penalty was given.
Arsenal got a third in the 11th minute of stoppage time when striker Gabriel Jesus caught United on the break. There weren’t enough men back to stop him, and he faked out his marker rather thoroughly before slotting past Onana from close range. It was insult to injury, really. Arsenal won 3-1.
The referee was not helpful today, but United were really hindered by the injuries to the center backs. This was heading towards a respectable 1-1 before the defense finally cracked under the Arsenal pressure. Rice was completely alone at the back post for the winner. Who was supposed to be marking him? United conceded far too many corners and there was finally one too many. The third goal wouldn’t have happened if it stayed 1-1, as United would have had more men back to defend. But the bigger issue is the fact that for long periods of time in this match the build-up play was slow and labored. United have fast and technically gifted attacking players, and they play best when they play fast.
Whoever the VAR official was in this match, he completely lost the plot with the offside call against Garnacho. Terrible. Awful. Total miss. Garnacho was onside. It seems the offside rule is written in pencil, as it changes week to week. Even under the new rule, this was an extremely harsh call that affected the outcome of the match. We went from having a potential 2-1 lead on 88 minutes to losing the match 3-1. Can’t believe we can’t figure out the offside rule in 2023.
The outcome remains the same of course, no matter how much the referee blew it. United’s struggles on the road against top sides continue. Only 6 points from the first four matches this season as well. Injuries are piling up. New signings Serge Reguilon and Sofyan Amrabat are waiting in the wings, and hopefully we can get some defenders healthy during the upcoming international break. I was impressed with Højlund today. He’s a bigger lad than I thought he was, and technically gifted for his size. He had a key role in the build-up to The Goal That Wasn’t for Garnacho.
The non-injured players will now join up with their national teams for the next two weeks. England have away matches against Ukraine and Scotland in the qualifiers for Euro 2024. England have a 100% record so far in qualifying, and they are more than capable of continuing that in the next two matches. ETH will be wise to use this time to evaluate his tactical plans and incorporate the new signings more into the team. United must improve away from Old Trafford to have any hope of maintaining pace with Arsenal and league leaders Manchester City.
As always, Glazers Out!
4-4-2 