Thomas Hein
Full Time: Arsenal 1-3 Manchester United
Manchester United kept up the pressure on Manchester City with a hard-fought 3-1 win over Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium. The Gunners had not lost a game at their home all season but the Red Devils started off like a house on fire with a couple of quick goals.
Antonio Valencia started it all with a smart finish through Petr Cech’s legs before Jesse Lingard made it 2-0 to the away side.
That was when Arsenal woke up from their slumber and absolutely battered the away side. There were numerous chances for Alexandre Lacazette, Aaron Ramsey and even Alexis Sanchez but no one could beat David de Gea in the first-half.
The second-half also started in the same way as Arsenal dominated possession and kept on hammering shots on goal before Lacazette smashed one in after Ramsey’s touch landed into the feet of the Frenchman. Arsenal still went looking for an equaliser and were denied brilliantly by De Gea. The quick double-save, however, worked in our favour as we went the other way through Paul Pogba, who set Lingard up for a tap-in.
The Frenchman didn’t see the entire game through as he was sent off for a stamp on Hector Bellerin but that did not dampen the spirit as we held on for the win to put pressure on Man City who beat West Ham on Sunday.
David de Gea was the man of the match but here are the ratings for the other players.
Manchester United Player Ratings
David de Gea – 9.5/10
De Gea was absolutely sensational in keeping Arsenal out. Had it been any other goalkeeper, he would have conceded at least five more. There wasn’t much he could have done with Lacazette’s goal but United should thank their star.
Victor Lindelof – 7/10
The Swede might not have had the best of times since moving to United but this was one of his better displays even though Arsenal dominated.
Chris Smalling – 7.5/10
Smalling didn’t have the best of days either as Arsenal were battering us but it was a decent display from the Englishman.
Marcos Rojo – 7/10
The Argentine did have a better outing than normal and did well to keep some of the Arsenal attacks at bay.
Antonio Valencia – 8/10
Another fantastic display from the wing-back, Valencia started the scoring and did a lot more than just attack, in this new formation that we put out.
Paul Pogba – 7.5/10
Pogba was incredible in the first half and also controlled the midfield in the second half before being sent off. He will be a big miss for the derby against Manchester City.
Nemanja Matic – 7/10
Matic made an excellent block in the first half and did his role perfectly in trying to shield our defence.
Ashley Young – 7/10
Th Englishman was one of our better players at the Emirates and did well, facing the likes of Mesut Ozil.
Jesse Lingard – 8.5/10
Lingard was exceptional in the game with his running and finishing, and this is the kind of player we need to see on a regular basis.
Romelu Lukaku – 6.5/10
Lukaku tried his best to bully Laurent Koscielny but did not get enough chances to actually find the back of the net. The Belgian did play a huge role in the second goal though.
Anthony Martial – 6/10
Martial didn’t have a lot of output in the attack and we could have used him better in the game as we spent most of the time defending. He did, however, set Lingard up for the second goal.
Substitutes
Ander Herrera – 6.5/10
Herrera didn’t really have a lot of running to do as we were mostly pegged back in our own half after Pogba’s sending off.
Matteo Darmian – 6/10
The Italian was brought on to provide some stability to our defence and did alright.
Marcus Rashford – N/A
Was brought into the game late on and did not have an impact.
