Manchester United edged a thriller at the Emirates Stadium. Re-live the game with the best facts and Opta data in our Arsenal vs Man Utd stats page.
Arsenal could sense it – they were finally level again at 2-2 in the 85th minute, and the unmistakable whiff of something was in the air: a winner.
Such instincts proved on the money, only it wasn’t their winner that came. Within seconds of Manchester United restarting from centre, Matheus Cunha combined with Kobbie Mainoo and charged towards the Arsenal penalty area before curling a gorgeous effort into the bottom-right corner from nearly 30 yards.
There was bedlam in the away end, utterly stunned silence practically everywhere else. The furious optimism that greeted Mikel Merino’s scrappy leveller evaporated quicker than anyone could have imagined, and Arsenal were unable to inject that belief back into their performance over the final exchanges.
Suddenly, Arsenal’s lead in the title race – four points – looked precarious, as much because of the message their recent results sends to rivals, whereas Manchester United seem to have become frontrunners for Champions League qualification almost at the flick of a switch.
There was never really a sense ahead of the game that this was going to follow an identical pattern to United’s derby win, in which Michael Carrick’s men were devastating in transition and on the counter.
The assumption was Arsenal would be more effective than City were – perhaps in response to that game – at preventing counter-attacks and keeping the contest tight.
It wasn’t that surprising to see how the first half hour (or slightly less) transpired, then, as Arsenal dominated matters and exerted a kind of suffocating control that City simply never did last weekend.
Arsenal’s zones of control at 0-0Granted, Arsenal chances didn’t exactly flow relentlessly, but United struggled to get out of their own half and were worried by the Gunners’ set-piece prowess.
Martín Zubimendi saw a fine header from a free-kick delivery well saved by Senne Lammens with the game’s first real chance in the 18th minute – the Belgian was helpless about 11 minutes later, though.
Bukayo Saka recycled the ball in the United box after a poor headed clearance by Patrick Dorgu, the England international finding Martin Ødegaard, whose rather scruffy attempt was diverted in by Lisandro Martínez amid grappling with Jurrien Timber.
Bizarrely, however, Arsenal’s response was poor. Sloppiness presented a counter-attacking opportunity that led to Bruno Fernandes shooting wide; the United captain spurned an even better chance soon after when the Gunners gave possession away.
It was third time lucky for United, who, for about five minutes, had looked a completely different team. Their equaliser required a significant helping hand, though.
Zubimendi needlessly gifted the ball right to Bryan Mbeumo, with the Cameroonian slotting home his 50th Premier League goal after coolly sidestepping David Raya.
Arsenal may not have been overly concerned about being level at the break, given each of the previous four meetings between these two at the Emirates had been all square at half-time and the Gunners had gone on to win three of them.
But the stadium was stunned early in the second half. Dorgu darted inside, played a couple of one-twos with Fernandes and then struck the bouncing ball into the top-left corner from 25 yards for a goal of the season contender.
It continued the Dane’s promising recent development, with that his third goal in his last six Premier League appearances after not netting in any of his first 28 – this one was in a standard of its own, however.
Arteta’s response? The introduction of four players from the bench just before the hour. While it brought a reaction from the crowd, Arsenal didn’t suddenly find chances easy to come by, managing only one shot between then and the 70th minute.
One of those substitutes did yield an equaliser, however. Typically, an Arsenal corner sparked mania in the United box and Merino eventually bundled over the line despite Benjamin Sesko’s best efforts.
Of course, it didn’t last.
United seemingly weren’t content to settle, with Cunha’s carrying ability proving a very helpful outlet – and, as it proved, a huge weapon.
After an interchange between Fernandes and Mainoo, the Brazilian romped towards the Arsenal goal and found the net with a strike worthy of winning any match.
Arsenal could mount no real response, Cunha’s goal crushing the morale of the Gunners and taking United back into the top four, looking good value for that push for Champions League football on the evidence of their two matches under Carrick.
Our Opta match centre delivers you all the Arsenal vs Man Utd stats from their Premier League meeting at Emirates Stadium on Sunday.
The match centre below includes team and player stats, expected goals data, passing networks, an Opta chalkboard and more. It gives you everything you need to do your own match analysis.
Underneath the match centre you can find the official Opta stats on the game as well.
Arsenal vs Man Utd Stats: Post-Match Facts
Facts to follow…
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Arsenal 2-3 Man Utd Stats: Carrick Has Midas Touch Again as Cunha Screamer Stuns Gunners Opta Analyst.
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