In a stunning encounter, Manchester United beat Arsenal 3-2 to make it back to back wins for Michael Carrick.
The Red Devils hit back after conceding in the first half from a Lisandro Martinez own goal as Bryan Mbeumo took advantage of a mishit pass from Martin Zubimendi to make it 1-1.
A stunning strike from Patrick Dorgu gave United the lead which they held until the 84th minute when a set-piece melee resulted in Arsenal’s equaliser.
But the drama wasn’t finished there, as Matheus Cunha made a huge impact off the bench scoring from a stunning strike late on to give United the win.
Arsenal’s Sloppiness
Arsenal started off well and aggressive. Gabriel and William Saliba as centre-backs kept following Bruno Fernandes around regardless of where he went, so on some occasions, it led to the ball being turned over.
United struggled with rhythm early on and Arsenal were well worth their lead, but when they took the lead through Martinez’s own goal, from then onward Arsenal were incredibly sloppy in possession.
Be it through Bryan Mbeumo’s goal when Martin Zubimendi gave the ball away, or consistently losing possession through misplacing passes, the period of the game got United into the game.
There was a crucial period in the first half where United finally got their foot on the ball, had a spell of possession and had moments in attack due to Arsenal’s sloppiness with the ball.
It gave the Red Devils the belief they needed to grow into the game and have a few attacks.
This continued into the second half as though United dropped back into a mid/low block, whenever they got the ball they were capable of releasing one of their key players to have a shot on goal, it just so turned out that two of the strikes were absolutely stupendous from outside the box.
The Gunners started well, but due to their own errors, they let United in the game as the stadium became more irate and nervy and it cost them the game.
United’s wide rondos
Michael Carrick has really not had long in the job at all but the change of formation, trust in players and profiling has transformed this United team.
It’s incredible to think how blunt United have looked in some games this season where they struggled to create. Playing against the ten men of Everton comes to mind.
It feels as though the shackles have come off and as a result we are seeing some neat, zippy passes, particularly wide.
Under Amorim, teams pressed United wide whenever it went to the right-sided or left-sided centre-back and trapped them in a corner. It led to Senne Lammens simply punting it long in hopes a striker would get on the end of it.
There is a stark contrast when the ball goes wide now as a midfielder in Casemiro or Kobbie Mainoo can be the inside option to pass to and because of Mainoo’s ability in tight spaces, we get to see quick, one-touch, two-touch football that gets them out of the press.
United’s rondos are lovely to watch and indicative of a team oozing confidence.
The strikes from Cunha and Dorgu were magnificent and we’ll see replays of them all week, but the rondos and ability from United’s midfield to get them out of tight spaces through quick passes is what got them into those positions in the first place.
Arsenal’s Bluntness in Attack
It didn’t feel like Arsenal would score from open play after Dorgu’s goal. They really struggled for ideas and most of their play revolved around being camped close to United’s box and passing it from side to side.
Without any half-space runs in behind from the full-backs, they struggled to find space and United has spells of possession themselves.
For all their desperation in trying to score after Dorgu’s goal, they only registered four shots on target.
It felt a little bit like some of the matches last season where Arsenal looked extremely blunt in attack without being sure of how to break down defences.
United had done their homework and used a similar plan out of possession against City.
Mikel Arteta possesses a plethora of options in his squad in terms of attacking depth, it’s an expensively assembled squad that benefits on having almost every solution needed.
But when push came to shove in a monumental match in the season and title race, even after he shuffled his pack and tinkered with substitutions, set-pieces looked like Arsenal’s best route to goal.
For Carrick, things could not have gone better. Amorim’s exit through the club into confusion and disarray. The players look refreshed and energised and are not trying to play a style of football that frankly never looked threatening enough.
Back to back wins against Manchester City and Arsenal is not to be sniffed at. As for Arteta and Arsenal, they still look like the team that will win the title, but this game raised more questions than answers.
They have mastered set-pieces, the dark arts and become a physically tough team and are probably one of the best in Europe.
However, a mentality of putting results first by any means necessary as opposed to some of the explosive football they played first under Arteta means they run into matches like this where they struggle to create.
The title and season is still on for Arsenal to be historic, but perhaps they should be clear further at the top.
They may be favorites, but have no win in three league games. If they are to win the coveted title, they must steady themselves and regain form.