Manchester United vs Arsenal | Preview : Can Arsenal break the jinx of Old Trafford?
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Manchester United and Arsenal lock horns in the first game Premier League match after the international break. The match will mean a lot to both teams for very different reasons as Arsenal try to keep up with Liverpool at the top of the table while United will look to build on the Swansea win.
Mourinho’s stuttering men were buoyed by a comfortable 3-1 win over Swansea before the break and the game will see Mourinho will return to the touchline after serving a one-match ban for his altercations in the United-Burney game. United have been hot and cold this season but it is still very early to draw any significant conclusions as to where they will end up. Summer signings Pogba and Ibrahimovic were both on the scoresheet in their last Premier League outing which would serve as a major confidence boost for the squad. Pogba scored a stunning half-volley to silence his critics who’ve not made life particularly easy for him after his 89 million pound transfer from Juventus in the summer. Ibrahimovic, whoever, will miss the game against Arsenal after picking up his fifth yellow card of the campaign.
Arsenal, on the other hand, ran out of firepower and failed to beat Tottenham Hotspur at home before the commencement of the international break. November has apparently been Arsenal’s worst month in terms of results over the years and they will definitely hope to change that. They have a tricky set of fixtures coming up as they square off against Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions league midweek which may have a significant impact on their round of 16 fate.
We’ve had some thrilling encounters when Manchester United and Arsenal have clashed in the Wenger-Ferguson era. The teams met each other twice last season. At the Emirates, Arsenal ran rampant and blanked United 3-0 while in the return fixture a young Manchester United side stunned Arsenal 3-2 at Old Trafford. Their last meeting saw youngster Marcus Rashford score a brace on his Premier League debut and the 19-year-old has gone on to establish himself as a contender for the vacant striker position.
Old Trafford is not a place where Arsenal have had many good memories in the recent past. The Gunners have managed just one league win at Old Trafford in the last 10 years which was back in September 2006 when Emmanuel Adebayor scored an 85th-minute clincher. The last Arsenal win at Old Trafford was scripted in March 2015 when former Red Devil Danny Welbeck scored a second-half winner taking Arsenal to the semi-finals of the 2015 FA Cup. The pressure will be on Arsenal, come Saturday, to bury their Old Trafford ghosts and overcome a poor record at the stadium and to reassert their position in the title race.
The Wenger-Mourinho rivalry will also resume this Saturday. The two managers have a history of their own which includes multiple heated exchanges on the touchline. Mourinho has also gone on record calling Wenger a ‘specialist in failure’. Arsene Wenger has never emerged victorious in meetings with the former Chelsea manager in the league. In 11 league encounters, Mourinho has never lost to Wenger winning 5 of the eleven matches.
United also have an injury crisis developing at the back with both centre-backs Eric Bailly and Chris Smalling unavailable due to knee and toe niggles respectively.
Arsenal had a drab 1-1 draw with North London rivals Tottenham Hotspurs at home and have lost their speedy right-back Hector Bellerin to an ankle injury until Christmas. Bellerin’s injury puts Wenger in a selection dilemma as his alternatives would be Mathieu Debuchy and Carl Jenkinson who are yet to gain full match fitness. Santi Cazorla will also miss the game for Arsenal and Alexis Sanchez's fitness is a doubt as well. The Chilean was rumoured to be unfit but ended up starting in Chile’s 3-1 win over Uruguay this week.
Manchester United have been Arsenal’s bogey team without any qualms as the North London club
