Match Review: Man United 1 Arsenal 0 - Premier League 10.11.13

I hate losing to Man U. This defeat is even more frustrating because we had the team and the form to beat them this time. They've started the season poorly, they don't look anywhere near the force they were before and they've even looked vulnerable at Old Trafford. It really felt time to put a dent in the Old Trafford curse we seem to have hanging over us, but yet again, we fell short on United's turf. We haven't triumphed there since 2006 and our overall record there is atrocious. It seemed a great opportunity to lay down a marker, to show we meant business. But, as usual, we came away empty handed.

I never enjoy big games really. It's always nerve shredding and the last few years have seen us bested in a lot of the big match ups. This match was horrible to watch, first because it was a big game, second because it was against a team we constantly lose to and third because it was a horribly slow and turgid game. We'd been dealt a big blow before the game even began; Mertesacker and Rosicky, two of the best performers in Dortmund were ruled out with flu, meaning Vermaelen started his first game this season.

Furthermore, Arteta and Gnabry were also affected, although Arteta started and Gnabry made the bench. It seems illness has hit the camp at a horribly unfortunate time. It meant the Gunners injury list for the game read (deep breath): Mertesacker, Rosicky, Walcott, Podolski, Diaby, Chamberlain. If Flamini and Wilshere hadn't made it back from that list, we'd have been looking at 8 (EIGHT) first team players out. Wilshere was only fit to start from the bench, but Flamini partnered Arteta in midfield. It meant Ramsey down the right, Cazorla down the left and Özil in the middle.

From the first minute, we looked as if the we had a collective flu. Man Utd controlled the early exchanges, finding some joy down the left with Evra able to get forward without much fear of a counter down his side. We saw more of the ball as the half progressed, but the movement was non-existant and the passing inaccurate. We struggled to get near the United area at all. Neither team was playing particularly well, neither looked particularly threatening, but United struck the decisive blow on 27 minutes. United won a corner, which was whipped in and glanced into the far corner by some horrible looking Dutch fella who celebrated like he'd won the World Cup. It was infuriatingly soft, the marking was rubbish and the attempt to win the header by Giroud was just a bit pathetic. So despite neither team showing much cutting edge, we found ourselves one down.

That's really all that happened in the first half. Arsenal 'attacked' in horribly anaemic fashion, Man Utd pressed and clogged the midfield and took advantage of our lack of width. Giroud, Ramsey, Cazorla and Özil were all stifled and our attacking threat was reduced to one half chance which Giroud headed wide and over. Vidic was knocked out by his own keeper in injury time and that was that for a miserable first half.

Nothing really changed at the start of the second half. I tweeted at half time that this didn't look like a situation we could turn around quickly and it proved so. The first thing we did from kick off was give the ball away and allow United to attack us and win a corner. It summed up the way things had been going, the lack of intensity and urgency in our play and the way United remained comfortable by pressing us high and intercepting errant passes.

Our pass accuracy was well off, Özil, Ramsey and Giroud in particular gave the ball away with maddening regularity which disrupted our rhythm horribly. Jack Wilshere replaced Flamini on 60 minutes which helped a little, as Ramsey dropped back into the middle with Wilshere taking up a place in the front three. The England midfielder added a little more impetus and there was no doubt that we were starting to control the game and look a bit more of a threat. But the final ball was always lacking and we remain completely averse to shooting from range, Cazorla in particular had a number of opportunities to let fly.

The fact that Cleverly had been brought on for Vidic, which meant Jones moving back into defence, also helped and freed some space in the middle, but it was still far too easy for United to frustrate us. Cazorla was replaced by Bendtner on 78 minutes, which effectively reduced us to ten men. This is where the injuries have hit us, not in the starting XI, but off the bench.

Without injuries we'd have had Rosicky, Walcott, Chamberlain and Podolski all available to give us more attacking edge. As it is, we have to throw on this embarrassment to the club and football in general, a man who has no right to wear the Arsenal jersey and by all accounts (including his own) doesn't want to. The sooner he leaves the better.

Serge Gnabry, another victim of the flu, came on for Arteta with about 10 minutes left and made some good runs and injected some pace into the attacks. He hasn't started in the league since Swansea away, which seems odd given how well he did. He seems ready for first team action and certainly gave us a bit more as we looked for a late equaliser.

There were a couple of half chances where we found a way through the United banks of four, only to be denied by last ditch tackles, but the big chance came in the 92nd minute. Sagna had already produced a couple of dangerous deliveries and right at the end, he produced the perfect cross. The ball curved beautifully in between the defenders and the keeper, right in the 'corridor of uncertainty' and that was needed was a touch from either Giroud or Bendtner. But neither made a concerted effort and the ball fizzed agonizingly by. The one big chance we had and we missed it. That was it. Old Trafford misery again.

It's not as if United were fantastic and outplayed us. What's frustrating is they were just ok, no real attacking threat, just solid in defence and intercepting. If we'd performed the way we did against Liverpool we'd have won the game today. With most of the title challengers dropping points, it would have been a really big win too.

As it is we stay top, but our lead has been cut to two points and United will feel they're right back in the race. We paid the price for one poor set piece and we'll have to pick ourselves up over the international break, because our first game after it is against Southampton, who are not so much in form but on fire. We have winnable games coming up and we need to make sure we get right back on track. Until then.

Teams

Man Utd (4-4-1-1)
De Gea, Smalling, Evans, Vidic (Cleverley 45'), Evra, Carrick, Jones ■, Valencia, Kagawa (Giggs 78'), Rooney ■, Dutch Bloke (Fellaini 85')
Subs
Giggs, Lindegaard, Hernández, Nani, Cleverley, Fellaini, Januzaj

Arsenal (4-2-3-1)
Szczesny, Sagna ■, Koscielny, Vermaelen, Gibbs, Arteta (Gnabry 83'), Flamini (Y)(Wilshere 61' ■), Ramsey, Özil, Cazorla (Bendtner 78'), Giroud
Subs
Fabianski, Jenkinson, Monreal, Hayden, Wilshere, Gnabry, Bendtner

Player Ratings

@sambangsdrumsTell us what you think! If you agree, or have a different view, please leave a comment in the comments section or why not write a response or your own article on YouWrite?

Think you know Arsenal? Test your Arsenal knowledge on our trivia page and see if you can beat the top score.

Don't forget to like us on Facebook, add us to your G+ circle and follow us on Twitter.