Jamie Jackson has filed his match report, so I’ll wrap this blog up. Thanks for your company and emails, goodnight.
Erik ten Hag’s verdict
I thought our start was really good, our best 10 minutes until now. After the disallowed goal we lost a bit of composure – that isn’t necessary, we need to keep going and play our game. There was a good team spirit. Arsenal created chances, of course, but so did we, especially on the break. We scored great goals.
[Were you worried by all Arsenal’s possession?] Worried is a big word. I knew our defensive line could deal with that. But they have a lot of creativity and good routines. We could have done things better, but that will come – we have not been together as long as Arsenal have. We have to work to get more control of the game. There’s still room for improvement.
It’s really good to see that, after the setback [of the equaliser], they fought back. I like that mentality. Arsenal played well but we defended well, and as a team. Our pressing organisation can be better and we can keep them further away from our goal. The same in possession – a little bit more composure and we can dictate the game even more. But as I say, we are not long in this process.
We have all seen what a threat Antony can be. We needed a player on the right – Jadon and Marcus Rashford can play there but they are more comfortable in the centre or on the left. He is the missing link. It was a great goal. All the goals were team goals.
Marcus Rashford’s verdict
It was a big test for us today and we showed up. We can be proud of ourselves. It was tough – they’re a good team, you know. They know their principles of play and they’re very good at it. They’re a possession-based team and they offer a lot of difficulties with players dropping into pockets. They’re electric when they get going.
I thought it was an even game. We managed to exploit the spaces and that’s what made the difference. We’ve got some excellent passers of the ball and you know that if you keep making runs you’ll eventually get a chance. It’s been a long time since I scored against Arsenal. It’s something I was looking to do this year, and I’m happy I did. It’s a great feeling, you do miss it as a player, and I hope I can stay fit and healthy.
Togetherness is the big thing for me from today. You only win these types of games when you’re together as a team. It’s something to build on and we’re looking forward to the next game.
“If Stockley Park watched the Zapruder film enough times,” says Tony Rudd, “I’d wager they could finally tell us who shot JFK. Perhaps referees should only be able to see the replays in real time, or limit the number of times they can view them.”
Or, better still, they can only watch them at 2x to the sound of Yakety Sax.
It’s yet another tale of Old Trafford frustration for Arsenal. Gabriel Martinelli had a goal controversially disallowed at 0-0, and the game looked theirs for the taking when Saka equalised after an hour. Maybe they pushed too hard; maybe Mikel Arteta gambled too early with a triple substitution and change of shape at 2-1. They still played very well, particularly Gabriel Jesus and Granit Xhaka, and they are still top of the league.
That was an excellent game, dominated for long periods by Arsenal. But United were ruthless in transition and scored three excellent goals. The debutant Antony got the first and then, after Bukayo Saka’s equaliser, Marcus Rashford scored twice to settle the match.
Christian Eriksen was fantastic in midfield and played a big part in all three goals. United are still miles away from challenging for the title, but four wins out of four is an admirable response to that Brentford fiasco. The team spirit looks excellent, a total contrast to last season.
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Full time: Manchester United 3-1 Arsenal
Manchester United win four league games in a row for the first time since April 2021.
90+3 min Fernandes’s cutback towards Ronaldo is well blocked by Gabriel. Ronaldo, who is desperate to score, bounces around the six-yard box in frustration.
90+2 min Smith Rowe whips a first-time shot over the bar from the edge of the D.
90+1 min The corner is headed away and United break, but Eriksen’s long pass towards Fred is intercepted. Had that cleared the defender on the halfway line, Fred would have been through.
90 min An imaginative pass/cross from Vieira is sliced over his own bar by McTominay. There will be four minutes of added time.
89 min The introduction of Fred, which was planned before the second goal and made after it, has changed this game. Arsenal haven’t been able to pass through United with the same ease, and I don’t think David de Gea has had a save to make in that time.
89 min “John Murray on Five Live has just informed us all that the only team in England with a perfect record is now Ebbsfleet in one of the very much lower leagues,” says Charles Antaki. “Not sure that’s much of a consolation to Arsenal.”
88 min Saka is booked for wiping out Malacia.
87 min “Did I hear that right?” says Simon McMahon. “Manchester United haven’t lost a league game at Old Trafford in which they were ahead at half time since 1984?”
Yep, the Ipswich game that finally finished off their title challenge in 1983-84.
86 min Fabio Vieira slashes a volley over from the edge of the area.
85 min Jesus floats a pass into Nketiah, who chests it past Maguire and then runs into him. No penalty.
84 min “VAR has stolen the headlines again,” says Yash Gupta, “but Arsenal are weak in the centre and very easy to play through.”
83 min Ramsdale charges from his area to beat Ronaldo to a through ball from Fred. Ronaldo screams in frustration, possibly at the pass from Fred, which was slightly too heavy.
83 min Xhaka’s free-kick hits the wall.
82 min Man Utd now have five central midfielders on the pitch, though Eriksen and Fernandes are playing from the wings. It’s been a strange game – United have been outclassed for most of it, yet they lead 3-1 and have scored three really good goals.
81 min Maguire is booked for fouling Jesus. He took one for the team there after a mistake by Casemiro.
80 min A change for Arsenal too, with Takehiro Tomiyasu replacing Ben White.
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80 min: Double substitution for Man Utd Harry Maguire replaces Lisandro Martinez, who is limping slightly, and Casemiro in on for Marcus Rashford. I think Rashford was feeling him hamstring too. He’s had an outstanding game: one assist, two goals and a whole load of flashbacks to February 2016.
77 min Gabriel Jesus has been booked for dissent. There was no debate about that goal – Arsenal were too high, almost on the halfway line, and Eriksen’s run was immaculately timed.
Fernandes curled a lovely pass around the defence to release Eriksen, who timed his run perfectly to beat a very high line. Eriksen pitter-pattered into the area, drew Ramsdale and then gave the goal to Rashford. He has an assist now!
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GOAL! Man Utd 3-1 Arsenal (Rashford 75)
VAR permitting, Manchester United are 3-1 up!
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74 min: Triple substitution for Arsenal Emile Smith Rowe, Eddie Nketiah and Fabio Vieira replace Zinchenko, Odegaard and Lokonga.
72 min Here’s the goal from Marcus Rashford that has restored United’s lead.
MAN UTD ARE IN FRONT AGAIN! 🔴
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) September 4, 2022
Arsenal have gotten counter-punched 🥊 pic.twitter.com/LGiRT4xmmX
71 min Jesus turns on the edge of the area and floats a curling shot just wide of the far post. He’s had a fantastic game.
71 min McTominay is booked for a wrestling manoeuvre on Gabriel Jesus.
70 min A note on the equaliser – Odegaard’s quick feet to create the angle for the pass are delightful.
SAKA HAS LEVELLED IT! 😲
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) September 4, 2022
Arsenal have dominated in the second half and now they have their reward ✅ pic.twitter.com/r8zIbq5fng
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69 min: Fine save by Ramsdale! He redeemed his own error, a dodgy pass out of defence that was intercepted by Fred. The ball ran to Fernandes, whose attempted chip was pawed away brilliantly by the outrushing Ramsdale.
68 min The book says Christian Eriksen has no assists today, but he was the guy behind the guy on both United goals.
67 min: Man Utd substitution Another change for United - but there’s still no sign of Casemiro. Fred has replaced the subdued Jadon Sancho.
United sliced Arsenal open on the break. Eriksen played a quick first-time pass into Fernandes, who stabbed a marvellous ball around Saliba to put Rashford through on goal. He moved to the edge of the area and hit a low shot that deflected off the sliding White and bounced over Ramsdale.
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GOAL! Man Utd 2-1 Arsenal (Rashford 66)
Would you believe it.
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65 min Here’s that equaliser from Bukayo Saka.
SAKA HAS LEVELLED IT! 😲
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) September 4, 2022
Arsenal have dominated in the second half and now they have their reward ✅ pic.twitter.com/r8zIbq5fng
63 min The equaliser hasn’t changed the game one iota – Arsenal are totally dominant, and Martinelli has just scampered away from Dalot to win a corner.
They’ve been the better team almost throughout, and now they’ve level. It came from a poor pass by Varane that was intercepted in midfield. Odegaard made room for a superb through pass towards Jesus in the area. He was challenged desperately by Dalot, but the ball ran loose for Saka to score from 12 yards.
GOAL! Man Utd 1-1 Arsenal (Saka 60)
Bukayo Saka gets a deserved equaliser for Arsenal!
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59 min Saka plays a very imaginative pass that just evades the underlapping White in the area.
58 min: United substitution The goalscorer Antony is replaced by … Cristiano Ronaldo. Crikey, that’s interesting. Rashford will move to the left and Sancho to the right.
56 min The only question is who Casemiro replaces, because United need him on urgently. Usually it’s Anthony Elanga but he’s not in the team today. It could be any of the attacking-midfield three – Sancho and Fernandes have been quiet, and Antony might not be able to do a full 90 minutes.
55 min After a lovely passing move from Arsenal, Saka’s chipped cross from the byline bounces off the top of the crossbar!
55 min “Paul Tierney – he’s one of our own,” sing the United fans. They haven’t forgotten the Jimmy Murphy Young Player of the Year 2001-02.
54 min “I think people are missing the point; VAR is only meant to get involved if it was a clear and obvious error,” says Mike Talc. “Paul Tierney clearly saw the action and did not consider it a foul. So was it a ‘clear and obvious’ clearly not from all the reactions.”
Yes, this has been lost along the way, and I’m not sure why. The original principle was to eradicate howlers, wasn’t it?
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52 min: Double chance for Arsenal and a penalty appeal! Jesus’s precise cutback is sliced across goal by Odegaard, an excellent opportunity, and then Saka blasts a right-footed cross shot just wide of the far post before being flattened by Malacia. Gabriel Jesus is having a stormer.
50 min United have barely crossed the halfway line in the second half. Even at 1-0 down, Arsenal are playing with a lovely relaxed confidence. If they recover to win this game they will feel, for want of a better word, invincible.
48 min Jesus twists Fernandes inside out on the edge of the area but then tries one swerve too many and is tackled by Varane. Arsenal have started the second half well.
47 min Zinchenko moseys infield and has far too much time to find Xhaka on the left side of the area. His low cross is cleared at the far post, I think by Malacia.
46 min Peep peep! No changes on either side yet.
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“Have to disagree Rob,” says Francis Mead. “For me it’s been a tremendously absorbing, combative game of football - VAR played a small role and rightly ruled it a foul. But it’s simply a great game.”
Point taken, though I’m not sure it’s a great game. This is a great game.
The Sky Sports panel’s verdict on Martinelli’s disallowed goal
Roy Keane “Soft”
Paul Merson “Very lucky”
Jimmy-Floyd Hasselbaink “Ridiculous”
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Half-time reading
“This ‘sapping the fun’ narrative is such baloney,” says Puneet Varier. “For once VAR actually gets a decision right (Odegaard got no part of the ball whatsoever and I say this as a complete neutral), and people still have issues with it? If people want to have fun rather than watch a fair game of football, they should watch Sunday League instead.”
I know this is pathetically immature, but I’m struggling to get past the first three letters of your surname.
Half time: Man Utd 1-0 Arsenal
Peep peep! Manchester United lead through a debut goal from Antony, but I’m afraid it’s been another tale of VAR. Gabriel Martinelli had a goal controversially ruled out for a foul by Martin Odegaard on Christian Eriksen, and Albert Sambi Lokonga might have been sent off for a dangerous tackle on Bruno Fernandes.
45+2 min Antony tries to chip Ramsdale from 40 yards. It’s not a bad effort, but Ramsdale backpedals to save comfortably in the end.
First half highlights
DRAMA AT OLD TRAFFORD! 🚨
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) September 4, 2022
Gabriel Martinelli's breakaway goal ruled out by VAR for a foul in the buildup! ❌ pic.twitter.com/1nZBkTfZOc
🌟 𝐀 𝐍 𝐓 𝐎 𝐍 𝐘 🌟
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) September 4, 2022
It's a dream debut goal for Man Utd's new star signing! 🇧🇷 pic.twitter.com/xxYfaqnLAU
45+1 min Three minutes of added time.
45 min “Weirdly,” says Zach Neeley, “the most illustrative moment of the 2000s rivalry was Van Nistelrooy’s missed penalty and the almost feral reaction from Arsenal’s players. Any attempt to act professional or adult completely overwhelmed by childish hatred.”
Rightly or wrongly, that had been brewing for a couple of years. They couldn’t stand van Nistelrooy.
44 min Saka wafts over from 22 yards, a rare example of poor decision-making from an Arsenal attacker in this first half.
43 min “Yes, that was probably a foul by Ødegaard on Eriksen, but making an issue of it was certainly wrong,” says Kári Tulinius. “It’s like stopping someone in the middle of a funny anecdote to correct them on which year it happened. It’s might be more accurate, but it saps the fun.”
I like that analogy. VAR: the heckler sitting alone in the front row.
42 min Rashford is receiving treatment after a bruising challenge with Gabriel. It’s been a frantic, intense first half – by modern standards, if not necessarily the history of this fixture.
40 min Martinez makes two important challenges in the United area, first on Jesus and then on Odegaard. Gabriel Jesus is causing United so many problems with his movement.
40 min “Unlike Adam, I was unhappy to be reminded of that 1983 semi-final,” says Tony Mason. “Aged 16 it seemed an age since Arsenal had last reached one (1980) and I recall being very excited only for it to all go to pot. I also travelled up to Manchester for the 2nd leg but were resigned to the 2-1 reverse and missing England vs Wales that was on the same day. Man Utd then went a stage further and ruined my FA Cup semi-final after Arsenal went 1-0 up and lost 2-1.”
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39 min Rashford picks up a loose ball near the halfway line and goes straight at the heart of the Arsenal defence. Saliba stays on his feet and makes an excellent tackle on the edge of the area.
38 min Arsenal look thoroughly radged off, understandably so given the balance of play. They have been very impressive. Another training-ground free-kick ends with Saka’s shot from the edge of the area deflecting through to de Gea.
36 min A word also for Eriksen, whose lovely pass through midfield to Fernandes started the move. There was a bit of aggro involving Xhaka and Antony before the kick off, though nobody seems to know what it was about.
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Gabriel fouled Fernandes 35 yards out but Paul Tierney allowed play to continue. Sancho picked up the loose ball and played it to Rashford, who found Antony in space to his right with a perfectly weighted pass. Antony opened his body to steer a precise first-time shot into the far corner. In the circumstances, that’s a very cool finish.
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GOAL! Man Utd 1-0 Arsenal (Antony 35)
Antony scores on his debut, and he has the referee to thank for a superb advantage!
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34 min “Let’s be 100 per cent honest, if that ‘goal’ had been at the other end and not ruled out for the foul, Arsenal fans would be on gurning about conspiracies and all sorts,” says Sam Campbell. “Fans don’t want the correct decisions, they want their teams to get the decisions.”
Oh absolutely, same with managers and players. Nobody wants absolute justice; they want their justice.
32 min: Fine save from de Gea! Arsenal keep the ball for an age until Odegaard, in the inside-right channel, waves a pass/cross beyond the far post. Martinelli gets behind Fernandes and plants a header back across goal that is pushed away dramatically by de Gea. Excellent save.
30 min Arsenal take the corner short and work it infield to Xhaka, whose shot from the edge of the area is blocked. I’m not sure it was going in. But it feels like an Arsenal goal is coming.
30 min Martinelli deflected cross almost sneaks in at the near post, with de Gea getting down to kick it behind for a corner.
29 min “Great to see the footage from 1983, my happiest evening as a United fan,” says Adam Roberts. “I was in London to sit my final professional exam - the last exam I ever took; my girlfriend lived in London so I dragged her along and the enjoyment of three sides of Highbury silent while the Clock End was raucous as United went 4-0 up is something I still cherish. And I was back in Manchester for the second leg. There were many nasty games between the two back then - Winterburn taunting McClair after missing that late penalty in the Cup left a very sour taste.”
28 min That was as bad, if not worse, as Virgil van Dijk’s tackle on Amadou Onana yesterday.
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27 min Lokonga leaves one on Fernandes, a naughty, studs-up challenge that isn’t spotted by the referee. That should be at least a yellow card, maybe more, but I don’t think VAR are looking at it.
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26 min Whatever the rights and wrongs of VAR, Arsenal are dominating this game now. United are struggling to deal with the movement of Jesus in particular.
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25 min Martinez pulled out of the challenge at the last second, then Saka stood on the ball and fell over. Martinez seemed to make slight contact with Saka’s heel, though not enough for the referee or VAR to be interested. I DON’T KNOW ANY MORE.
24 min Arsenal appeal unsuccessfully for a penalty after a risky challenge by Martinez on Saka. United break and Saliba is booked for a foul on Sancho.
25 min “I understand why that goal was chalked off,” says James Hupp, “but the push Tierney ignored was also exactly the kind of contact that refs were instructed to look past during the normal run of play to ‘let the game flow’. Does letting all that happen and then pulling back to review the leg contact in great VAR detail really let it flow better than blowing up the push in the first place would have?”
That’s a fair point. It’s all a bit of a mess, isn’t it, and an increasingly tedious one.
24 min In the last 10 minutes, so since the disallowed goal pretty much, Arsenal have had 61 per cent of the possession.
22 min Rashford finds Antony in space on the right. He cuts inside, 25 yards out, and curls high and wide of the far post. So far he has been a little overeager, though he did produce one lovely backflick that ultimately led to United’s best chance.
20 min A very deep corner from Saka is headed wide by the backpedalling Jesus.
19 min Saka roasts Malacia on the right, gets into the area and slides the ball towards Jesus at the near post. Varane nips in front to clear.
18 min Even disallowed goals can change games – Arsenal, who were on the back foot for the first 12 minutes, have dominated the ball since Martinelli’s goal was ruled out.
16 min The Arsenal case is that, though it probably was a foul by Odegaard, it wasn’t a clear and obvious error and therefore the goal should have been given. Oh I don’t know, I’m all VARed out.
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15 min “Why do people perceive Ten Hag as young when only four managers are older than him?” says Nelson Chiwara. “He’s statistically relatively out and a spry 52.”
Novelty, I suppose. That and, as I’ve always insisted, being bald takes 10 years off you.
NO GOAL! Man Utd 0-0 Arsenal
Maritn Odegaard is waving his hands in disbelief, and Mikel Arteta has his hands over his face. Arsenal have been robbed many times at Old Trafford over the years; I’m not sure they’ve been robbed here.
14 min: The referee is going to the monitor. Odegaard’s knee came across Eriksen, which is what Paul Tierney is looking at.
United are appealing for a foul on Eriksen. He was robbed by Odegaard on the halfway line, with Saka picking up the loose ball. Saka sliced United open with a devastating pass to Martinelli, who roared away from Dalot and beat De Gea with aplomb.
I think it’s a foul by Odegaard, though whether it’s a clear and obvious error is another matter.
GOAL! Man Utd 0-1 Arsenal (Martinelli 12)
A ruthless break from Arsenal!
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11 min Man Utd have had 85 per cent of the possession so far. Sancho teases White on the left side of the area and makes room for a low shot that is pushed away at the near post by Ramsdale.
9 min: Chance for Saliba! Xhaka’s cross hits a defender and rolls invitingly towards Saliba on the edge of the area. He opens his body and sidefoots over the bar. That was a pretty good chance, even though he had a couple of defenders charging towards him.
8 min: Chance for Eriksen! Antony produces a stylish flick behind his standing leg to find Dalot, who whips a first-time cross beyond the far post. Eriksen meets it on the volley with his left foot but slices it wide of goal. It was an awkward chance, which came to came at thigh height.
8 min Jesus is okay to continue. Play resumes with an uncontested drop ball.
6 min McTominay wins the ball high up the field from Jesus, who bangs his head against the turf as he falls. The referee stops play, rightly, though United aren’t happy.
6 min Antony’s first contribution is a cross that doesn’t beat the first man. It’s been a pretty quiet start.
5 min “As a genuine neutral when it comes to English club football, I’m looking forward to this one,” says Simon McMahon. “Two of the great names of English football. Young, dynamic managers. Star studded line-ups. Plus Scott McTominay. Roy Keane in the studio. VAR. B-movie or not, it’s gonna be fun.”
4 min Xhaka hooks a long-range shot that hits McTominay on the edge of the area.
2 min Dalot’s cutback from the left side of the area (don’t ask) is cut out by Xhaka. Arsenal break and Martinez flattens Jesus near the byline. He probably should have been booked for that.
1 min Peep peep! Manchester United kick off from left to right as we watch. Both teams are playing 4-2-3-1 as expected.
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The players are out, the atmosphere is lively. It’s time for Manchester United v Arsenal, part 237 (not counting the Mercantile Credit Centenary Trophy final of 1988).
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Manchester United v Arsenal: a classic Premier League rivalry. So say all of us, but the hatred precedes the dawn of football in 1992. It started, pretty much, with an unfortunate tangle of legs on an icy pitch in February 1983.
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Erik ten Hag speaks
"He knows the style, he can be a threat!" ⚡
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) September 4, 2022
Erik ten Hag starts Antony as Manchester United host Arsenal 🔴 pic.twitter.com/r8XGNNUUXi
Eeesh, Brighton have beaten Leicester 5-2; they stay fourth, Leicester bottom. Check out the reaction here:
There are some potentially belting contests in this match, but Bukayo Saka v Tyrell Malacia and Gabriel Jesus v Lisandro Martínez look especially tasty. Saka hasn’t started the season that well, which actually augurs well for Arsenal – it shows they can cope without him, and that they can still get much better – while Malacia has been extremely impressive. Saka will want to draw him in then spin away, that being something he does well and Malacia’s aggression occasionally verging on the rash – though his recovery pace can still get him out of trouble.
Jesus, meanwhile, was exactly the kind pf player Arsenal needed and he’s started the season playing with so much confidence. But in Martínez, he meets a player as agile and clever, in excellent form. I can’t wait to see how this one goes.
United, meanwhile, will probably play as they did against Liverpool, sitting in a mid-block and leaping into action when they think the ball can be won. The difference this time is that, with Antony on one side and Jadon Sancho on the other, they’ve two wingers coming inside, which might help them establish some midfield control – I’m sure it’ll be part of the plan. They’ll also want to exploit the space in behind Arsenal’s back four and will, you’d think, give it a sterner examination than it’s faced so far this season.
Looking more closely at the match-up, Arsenal are a lot closer to where their manager wants them to be than are United. They’ll look to press United high – in response, David de Gea may well hump his goalkicks long to take that out of the equation – with Odegaard and Xhaka, their two number 8s, playing high up the pitch.
Pre-match reading
As for Arsenal, their injury doubts – Aaron Ramsdale, Oleksandr Zinchenko and Martin Odegaard – all play, though Thomas Partey remains absent. They’re make one chance from the midweek win over Villa, the aforementioned Zinchenko in for Tierney, as they seek a sixth consecutive win.
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United make one change to the team that eked out a win at Leicester – Erik ten Hag is unable to resist the temptation to start Antony, who comes in for Anthony Elanga. He does, though, continue without Casemiro, kept on the bench by the good work Scott McTominay has put in recently. It makes some sense, I suppose, but not as much as doing the reverse.
Team news
Manchester United (4-2-3-1/4-3-3): De Gea; Dalot, Varane, Martinez, Malacia; McTominay, Eriksen, Fernandes; Antony, Sancho, Rashford. Subs: Heaton, Dubravka, Lindelof, Maguire, Ronaldo, Fred, Casemiro, Shaw, Elanga.
Arsenal (4-3-3): Ramsdale; White, Saliba, Gabriel, Zinchenko; Lokonga, Xhaka, Odegaard; Saka, Martinelli, Jesus. Subs: Turner, Tierney, Smith Rowe, Nketiah, Holding, Cedric, Tomiyasu, Vieira, Marquinhos.
Referee: Paul Tierney
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Preamble
To some the question is rhetorical, to others interrogative: how good are Arsenal? We should get an answer soon enough. Four of Arsenal’s next seven games are against Big Six teams, after which we’ll have a decent idea whether they are serious contenders for the top four, the top two or even the top one.
They’ve had a perfect start to the season – five games, five wins - and will stay top regardless of what happens today. There probably hasn’t been such optimism at the Emirates since the winter of 2015-16. But for now there’s an asterisk against Arsenal’s flying start, as their wins have come against the teams in 10th, 13th, 15th, 17th and 20th. While we shouldn’t necessarily announce that today is the real quiz, it’s certainly their biggest test of the season so far.
Old Trafford is a place where Arsenal often experience extreme emotions – the Battles of 1986, 1990 and 2003, clinching the Double in 2002, the 49-and-out robbery of 2004, the 8-2, the Overmars game, the false coming-of-age in 2020 and the rest. Arsene Wenger even coined a phrase, “Old Traffordish”, to describe some of the decisions that went against Arsenal.
At the turn of the century this was the best game in English, probably world football. For the last decade, let’s be honest, it has been a B-list fixture. But it’s still Manchester United v Arsenal, and come the first whistle we’ll all be salivating.
Kick off 4.30pm.
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