Terrible performance from us but we managed to scrape a point. Makes up for the countless occasions we outplayed Utd only to drop points. I wouldn't have started both Elneny and Coquelin, it's the midfield you start when only needing a draw in the away leg of a champions league tie or something. I also wouldn't start Ramsey at all atm, he stifles all our attacks. When he's on from, he is excellent- the archetypal box to box player, but when he is bad, he's terrible. Iwobi hasn't been in the best of form but I still would've started him because of his ball carrying skills and pace. All in all a good point for the Gooners' point of view. Zero chance of us playing like that in the return game at the Emirates.
@SteveHyland Pretty good analysis. I was also surprised Xhaka was dropped for El Neny. Ramsey for Iwobi is different as we all know that Ramsey gets shoe-horned into side as he is a Wenger favourite (for better or for worse).
Excellent analysis as usual Mr. Steve Hyland
@Overmars- Thank you. It'll be interesting to see the lineup against PSG. I would be shocked if Xhaka and Giroud aren't brought into the team. The way Sanchez looked in the 2nd half, I suspect his muscle tightened.
@SteveHyland Yeah, I hope we see more rotation in the champions league even though it may cost us top spot. Keeping Alexis injury free is crucial for our season.
@CUENCA- I think Fergie in particular would concede that during his time. Moyes and van Gaal's Utd teams got outplayed by pretty much everyone. The only times I remember us being outplayed, in the league, by Fergie's Utd were when we had a makeshift defence (the 6-1 and 8-2 losses). Other occasions it has been level and they have won, but in most of the games between the 2 sides where one has outplayed the other, we have been- as Jose would label it- the "unlucky" team. That's not to detract from Fergie's tactics. He often only ever played 3 midfielders against us to nullify our dominance and often got the best out of lesser players on those occasions (Park and O'Shea are 2 I particularly hate. Ha)
@Mega but still they draw with Arsenal flying at the top.
This spells the premier league for us, the position in the table isn't definitive, just the status of the club.
Can't understand why Wenger started Ramsey on the left wing today, and left the likes of the Ox and Iwobi on bench. To add to that, he substituted Coquelin and left him on the pitch.
Manchester United lost the plot after Schneiderlin came on. The negativity of the change effected the mindset of the both teams. Schneiderlin is a good player, and can't be blamed. Mourinho is to blame for the change. Manchester United's mindset went from dominating the game to only holding out for the 1-0 (They stopped attacking and controlling the game on the front foot. They sat very deep on the back foot instead). Man United didn't look like conceding at all until the change. Arsenal looked clueless, but after seeing the change by Mourinho looked to gain huge confidence and momentum. After the change the whole Man United midfield decided to sit in deep and they invited unnecessary pressure. And with a player like Giroud on for the opposition (and Koscielny even trying to get forward as an extra centre forward) you certainly do not want to invite balls into the box. Great play from Ox-C and Giroud, but Mourinho cost his side two points with that change I think.
@neumi17 He played ok, but wasn't given enough options when he got the ball (particularly on the counter attack). Sanchez was very deep all game long. This meant slow build up play resulted in no centre forward to aim at (and often Ozil himself found himself in the centre forward position. Even Elneny was centre forward at one point, Sanchez was dropping deep too often in my view). Ramsey ineffective on the left in attack and Ramsey struggled without the ball too. It would have suited Ozil much more if Giroud had played centre forward for the whole game with Sanchez on the left.
@neumi17 This time I have to agree with you, he didn't even stay on his feet today. But whole Aresnal's game was a mess, and Özil really needs Cazorla to get the best out of himself. Arsenal were just too slow and clueless today.
Brilliant play from Oxlade-Chamberlain and great header from Giroud. Mourinho's negative substitution has given Arsenal the initiative after Mata's great finish.
I was a bit wary United would sit deep and focus only defending. They did defend well, Arsenal couldn't create anything, but United were also much more of a threat in the first half. Mata is playing very smartly, he and Valencia are the most dangerous players on the pitch in my opinion. Arsenals' XI lacks creativity, mostly because of Coquelin Elneny midfield but Ramsey is defensive option too. And Alexis as forward doesn't really work against well organized defense. I hope Xhaka, Giroud and Iwobi/ Champerlain come in and help Arsenal to challenge, otherwise It'll be a draw or United win.
@neumi17 You probably look only at statistics which are pretty close, although United better at shots on target. Looking at the performance, which is what matters by the way, United have been much better. They should've also have afforded a penalty, Monreal didn't necessary cause Valencia to fall but he fouled him earlier.
I as a Manchester United fan would love to see Us win but I am professional gambler. Which makes me pick an Arsenal win. Why? I understand Manchester have a good history against Arsenal. They have the home Fans behind them. Manchester United have no Midfielder. They have no dependable strike force. Let's not talk about even the defense.
I hate to say this but I have no otherwise. Arsenal has space. Unbeaten in league since Match day 2. 80% win rate while playing away. Manchester United are only deadly while they place the fast attacking game. I am expecting a low scoring game. I mean low scoring. Arsenal DC X2. Could be 0-1/1-2. Mourinho days are gone. Just like the wind comes and goes. There's no where on earth you will ever find fast success. Miss LVG?
@njamimaranga "Professional gambler"?.. Bwaha hahahahahaha! Professional gamblers don't flip a coin & bet on difficult games to call when there's over 100 matches this week.
Draw looks likely, hopefuly not Mourinho masterpiece of 0-0 but with some goals. No Ibramugovic should make hosts scoring and Arsenal should also get one at least.
Whoscored is predicting that Mustafi could play at RB. That would be suicidal. I'm sure Wenger will NOT tamper with the 'Kostafi' partnership at the CB. We've got many other options for RB, but not Mustafi. Jenkinson is naturally the favourite tp play there.
@Valor Mustafi can play across the backline and I'd rather he plays than Jenkinson who is no threat at going forward nor is he any good at defending. Mustafi is a natural defender and is comfortable on the ball. He's not Bellerin but defensively he's much more reliable than Jenkinson will be. Rob Holding alongside Koscielny wont be a problem at all. Holding is actually a better defender than any of the United's backline. United would probably have Martial as the favorite to play on the left wing but he's off form and low in confidence. I doubt he's going to put in a shift. The team spirit at United is low right now and they do not offer any threat with this team. If Sanchez is fit to play, form of Ozil and Walcott Im expecting Arsenal to really go for it! United do not have an established XI yet. cant score goals or defend. have shocking stats for a £500m team. Their best player Mkhitaryan is not even on the bench! Arsenal's defense is much better than United's regardless! Salut
@albgunn "Do not destroy what works", said Wenger in his pre-match interview. He confirmed he isn't tampering with Kostafi partnership. What a relieve to hear this.
@albgunn- Not sure why that message posted before I clicked post but I was going to say: I think you're being harsh regarding Jenkinson. The stick he gets is largely based on a terrible performance at old Trafford 5 years ago. He is a better player now than back then and played well on a number of occasions for West Ham. I think it's worth playing him while Bellerin is out because, if it works, then we will have a genuine backup to Hector and wont need to play him in every game like last season. Ultimately we shall see, but I agree with Valor, I highly doubt Wenger will break up the Kostafi partnership. Holding is more likely to play at RB than Mustafi but it will probably be Jenkinson.
@albgunn- I think you're being harsh regarding Jenkinson. All the stick he gets is largely based on a terrible performance at old Trafford 5 years ago. He is a better player now than back then and played well on a number of occasions for
No prizes for guessing Maureen 's game plan here. Let's see if the Old Travesty crowd have more patience for The Special Mong when he parks the bus at home than they did for LvG or Moyes. Let's just hope Andre "Specsavers" Marriner behaves himself this time. This fixture (Man/Arsenal or Wenger/Mourinho) has had too much bad refereeing down the years. Time for a change. Yes We Can (have good refs)! Make the Premier League Great Again! Eradicate blind refs! Blah blah blah. Etc.
12 and GG cos both teams have a weakened defence. Man Utd not too good at front but any player can score. Arsenal is hot in front with a depleted defence
@Reborn Depleted how? Because it's missing one player? What about Man U's defence? Even the master bus-parker, Mourinho, hasn't stopped Man U from conceding more than Arsenal.
So Bellerin out is a big miss but apparently Monreal, Holding and Mustafi can comfortably play at RB as well as Jenkinson being second choice RB! Big squad less problems! I think we will miss here Santi Cazorla as he is our heartbeat but Xhaka had an excellent game against Spurs and I beieve he's getting better. Ramsey I think alongside Xhaka could put Arsenal in a more offensive game but Coquelin and Xhaka against Fellaini could probably be a red card at some point! I think Arsenal have the better squad to United still as United do not have an established first XI still!
I'm going for a first time bubble burst for Jose by Wenger! 0/1:2 final score!
@albgunn In my opinion, Xhaka has more tendencies to make red-card-tackles than Coquelin. Wenger is likely to start both of them while Ramsey comes on in second half, depending on the need.
@Valor Yes but Xhaka is a better passer and actually can score too. Coquelin is a pure defender only suited to break up play. Arsenal do no play this kind of game as they like to control the ball and short pass. Xhaka can initiate an attack and Coquelin cannot as his passing range is short and his spacing is not good at all. He is however a good defensive midfielder but Arsenal hardly get pinned down by any team. To add to the fluidity of Arsenal's play Xhaka is more suited to this Arsenal side. When in form the best midfielder is Ramsey at Arsenal as he's the only box2box we have. but what makes this team tick is only Santi Cazorla in the middle! We will only miss him in this game!
@albgunn I don't really know what kind of eyes u do use to watch Coq, santi brings best of Coq and their partnership was so effective just like Song and Fab,all I know is I prefer Coq to xhaka especially at the heart of that midfield and for the record Coq is a very good passer of the ball but I just like the way he keep it simple and I appreciate him a lot.
@albgunn- But Coquelin often seems to play well in big games and playing at Old Trafford is as big as it gets. Xhaka hasn't proved he's a big match player at all in his career. Actually at his time at BMG and for Switzerland, he often went missing- although he played well against Spurs so hopefully that signals a tide of change. I don't see the point of playing Xhaka and Ramsey in a game like this, Ramsey offers nothings defensively and I don't like the idea of Xhaka being the only tackler. In order to be able to play with the ball, you need to break up play and get the ball back. Coquelin does that better than anybody else in our squad so he'll play, probably with Xhaka.
@albgunn he could celebrate here with a hat trick dont under estimate the donkey my friend...can endure better thann a horse or a cow or even an elephant
@buthethi Celebrate with a hatrick? the guy's best is 10 goals a season at Juventus and so far hast started almost all United games, 4 months into the EPL and has played in Europa league too, he's on 2 goals in EPL and 2 goals in Europa League! How will he score a hatrick against Arsenal? in warm up perhaps he will hit an empty net 3 times? LOL you are as deluded as those who paid £120m for him! I have nothing against the guy but stats never lie! Good luck saturday!
I would rest Alexis for this game. He is playing for Chile as I type, despite having a torn muscle. Wtf?! Giroud, on the other hand, played just half an hour against the Ivory Coast. Bellerin is out for a month and Cazorla wont be fit for this game so I would go with: Cech, Jenkinson, Mustafi, Koscielny, Monreal, Coquelin, Xhaka, Walcott, Oezil, Iwobi, Giroud. I know it's Wenger's nemesis, Mr Anti-Football himself in the opposite dugout but unlike at Chelsea, he doesn't have a solid defence to base his game-plan on. Conspiracy theorists would say Zlatan intentionally got himself booked so he misses this game and the inevitable criticism he would receive after a 5-shot/No-goal match. We have shown signs this season of shedding the typical Arsenal traits which have plagued us in seasons gone by. If we win here and get 2 monkeys off our backs (winning at Old Trafford in the league and beating a Mourinho-led team) then our legitimacy as title contenders will be strengthened.
With Bellerin, Santi Cazorla and maybe Alexis not 100% fit, - I think I'm going for a Man United win. Originally thought it may be a 1-0 home win, but with the Mourinho curse and our injuries I think it will be 2-0 with a Man U counter-attack goal when Arsenal have over-committed. With Zlatan injured, Man United have a much pacier front line.
2-0 Man U Nightmare predicted.
@OvermarsWith the current squad depth, Arsenal is not reliant on any of these 3 players. Not this season. Le Prof has got options enough to win this game.
@Overmars Er, the correct way to look at it is that we lost by 1 goal against a team that plays attacking football at the expense of its defence, while playing two kids at CB. Anyway, that game could have been a draw or a win for us, if luck had been different.
@Overmars- Yeah but Liverpool have a far more incisive attack, Coutinho and Mane scored wonder goals and we had a CB pairing a combined age of 41 playing their first competitive game together. Against Utd's attack plus with Mustafi & Koscielny playing, I don't think we'll concede 4 even with, say, Jenkinson at RB and Gibbs. I think we both know what Jose's game-plan will be and it doesn't involve getting into a football battle unfortunately.
@SteveHyland To be honest, glad Man United were far worse than I thought. Pogba for 80m is a farce. I feel we could have even test their defence more. Also, I saw LFC draw with Southampton so maybe they may lose steam as the season goes on. Chelsea are the team to watch now.
This match will go for Arsenal any how. They'll score 2/3, bcz, there r some potential defender r absent for Mou. Even Jose's men couldn't score with Ibra missing.
@SaifHasan- There's more chance of Utd scoring WITHOUT Ibrahimovic. He has taken almost 10 shots to score a goal whereas Rashford has needed less than half of that. It's only because Zlatan has been an ever-present and Marcus has played just 1 game in the #9 role that he is leading the Utd scoring charts. I wouldn't be worried about Utd's attacking threat too much if Zlatan was starting but Rashford's pace (with the ball especially) and his finishing is much more of a danger.
@jasper.james Arsenal fans said the same thing about thrashing utd last season at OT but couldn't do it and now with jose it is much more difficult. They haven't won at OT for over a decade.
@WazzaFC Actually we beat man u at Trafford in the fa cup quarter finals in 2014 with Danny welbeck scoring the winning goal and di Maria getting Sent off
Terrible performance from us but we managed to scrape a point. Makes up for the countless occasions we outplayed Utd only to drop points. I wouldn't have started both Elneny and Coquelin, it's the midfield you start when only needing a draw in the away leg of a champions league tie or something. I also wouldn't start Ramsey at all atm, he stifles all our attacks. When he's on from, he is excellent- the archetypal box to box player, but when he is bad, he's terrible. Iwobi hasn't been in the best of form but I still would've started him because of his ball carrying skills and pace. All in all a good point for the Gooners' point of view. Zero chance of us playing like that in the return game at the Emirates.
@SteveHyland Pretty good analysis. I was also surprised Xhaka was dropped for El Neny. Ramsey for Iwobi is different as we all know that Ramsey gets shoe-horned into side as he is a Wenger favourite (for better or for worse). Excellent analysis as usual Mr. Steve Hyland
@Overmars- Thank you. It'll be interesting to see the lineup against PSG. I would be shocked if Xhaka and Giroud aren't brought into the team. The way Sanchez looked in the 2nd half, I suspect his muscle tightened.
@SteveHyland Yeah, I hope we see more rotation in the champions league even though it may cost us top spot. Keeping Alexis injury free is crucial for our season.
@SteveHyland countless occasions?
@CUENCA- I think Fergie in particular would concede that during his time. Moyes and van Gaal's Utd teams got outplayed by pretty much everyone. The only times I remember us being outplayed, in the league, by Fergie's Utd were when we had a makeshift defence (the 6-1 and 8-2 losses). Other occasions it has been level and they have won, but in most of the games between the 2 sides where one has outplayed the other, we have been- as Jose would label it- the "unlucky" team. That's not to detract from Fergie's tactics. He often only ever played 3 midfielders against us to nullify our dominance and often got the best out of lesser players on those occasions (Park and O'Shea are 2 I particularly hate. Ha)
Look at it another way, this is a game Arsenal would have lost 3-0 in previous seasons, so it's definite progress.
@What4 HAHAHAHA Arsenal fan's will never gonna change.
One win in six games for Manchester United in the Premier League.
@Mega Also spent 80m on one player
@Mega but still they draw with Arsenal flying at the top. This spells the premier league for us, the position in the table isn't definitive, just the status of the club.
Can't understand why Wenger started Ramsey on the left wing today, and left the likes of the Ox and Iwobi on bench. To add to that, he substituted Coquelin and left him on the pitch.
i do believe wenger is over paid , and Sanchez is under paid ...
@Valor Sanchez on the left, Giroud centre forward would have been the best option I think
@Mega @Valor Everyone can be a brilliant manager after the game, with the benefit of hindsight.
Manchester United lost the plot after Schneiderlin came on. The negativity of the change effected the mindset of the both teams. Schneiderlin is a good player, and can't be blamed. Mourinho is to blame for the change. Manchester United's mindset went from dominating the game to only holding out for the 1-0 (They stopped attacking and controlling the game on the front foot. They sat very deep on the back foot instead). Man United didn't look like conceding at all until the change. Arsenal looked clueless, but after seeing the change by Mourinho looked to gain huge confidence and momentum. After the change the whole Man United midfield decided to sit in deep and they invited unnecessary pressure. And with a player like Giroud on for the opposition (and Koscielny even trying to get forward as an extra centre forward) you certainly do not want to invite balls into the box. Great play from Ox-C and Giroud, but Mourinho cost his side two points with that change I think.
Limp performance from The Arsenal, but at least we got the point. A goal made by the subs ;)
@What4 Giroud hasn't had this much positive appearance as he had this season. He has been there for Arsenal and I hoped he wouldn't.
Big game again and nothing to see from Özil as usual. No shots, no presence and even no keypasses.
@neumi17 He played ok, but wasn't given enough options when he got the ball (particularly on the counter attack). Sanchez was very deep all game long. This meant slow build up play resulted in no centre forward to aim at (and often Ozil himself found himself in the centre forward position. Even Elneny was centre forward at one point, Sanchez was dropping deep too often in my view). Ramsey ineffective on the left in attack and Ramsey struggled without the ball too. It would have suited Ozil much more if Giroud had played centre forward for the whole game with Sanchez on the left.
@neumi17 This time I have to agree with you, he didn't even stay on his feet today. But whole Aresnal's game was a mess, and Özil really needs Cazorla to get the best out of himself. Arsenal were just too slow and clueless today.
Brilliant play from Oxlade-Chamberlain and great header from Giroud. Mourinho's negative substitution has given Arsenal the initiative after Mata's great finish.
Death, taxes and Mourinho beats Wenger every time. God Damnit
@SmoothJitsu253 there have been few draws
@libehv haha!
@libehv And Giroud is a gorgeous manbeast
@SmoothJitsu253 8 goals from his last 9 shots on target - not bad
85 mins and not a single shot on target for Arsenal. Pretty much sums up this game for the Gunners.
Rooney has been great since coming on
I was a bit wary United would sit deep and focus only defending. They did defend well, Arsenal couldn't create anything, but United were also much more of a threat in the first half. Mata is playing very smartly, he and Valencia are the most dangerous players on the pitch in my opinion. Arsenals' XI lacks creativity, mostly because of Coquelin Elneny midfield but Ramsey is defensive option too. And Alexis as forward doesn't really work against well organized defense. I hope Xhaka, Giroud and Iwobi/ Champerlain come in and help Arsenal to challenge, otherwise It'll be a draw or United win.
@Castle Spot on (y)
I would bring Giroud on for Ramsey and play Sanchez on the left.
It says Sanchez has zero tackles at half time? What? I reckon he's made two so far.
At ht I can't say which team is better...
@neumi17 You probably look only at statistics which are pretty close, although United better at shots on target. Looking at the performance, which is what matters by the way, United have been much better. They should've also have afforded a penalty, Monreal didn't necessary cause Valencia to fall but he fouled him earlier.
@Castle Yes, I was only looking at the statistics since I am at the beach right now ;-) But thank you for your game report!
@neumi17 No problem. But at the beach!? Nice for you, in Finland snows have been melting and it's super wet and slippy here. Really depressing :(
@Castle Ha, ha, same in Germany, thats why I had to escape to morocco for a week...
@Castle every time I turn my head to look at the game, ManU is attacking It seems that they are the aggressor in this game and Mata delivered
@neumi17 I think Man United as Cech has made 3 saves and De Gea hasn't been tested.
United to win!
As a United fan, I swear I can't see a victory for us, Arsenal to win or draw at least and maybe to win.
This match gonna be 2-2. There will be penalty goal in this. Rooney to score.
I as a Manchester United fan would love to see Us win but I am professional gambler. Which makes me pick an Arsenal win. Why? I understand Manchester have a good history against Arsenal. They have the home Fans behind them. Manchester United have no Midfielder. They have no dependable strike force. Let's not talk about even the defense. I hate to say this but I have no otherwise. Arsenal has space. Unbeaten in league since Match day 2. 80% win rate while playing away. Manchester United are only deadly while they place the fast attacking game. I am expecting a low scoring game. I mean low scoring. Arsenal DC X2. Could be 0-1/1-2. Mourinho days are gone. Just like the wind comes and goes. There's no where on earth you will ever find fast success. Miss LVG?
@njamimaranga "Professional gambler"?.. Bwaha hahahahahaha! Professional gamblers don't flip a coin & bet on difficult games to call when there's over 100 matches this week.
1-1 Draw. Pogba to perform some magic here with a disappearing act.
@B3njamin Wow, perfect call. Even Pogba disappearing.
United 2 - 2 Arsenal
0-1~Ars win~
Draw looks likely, hopefuly not Mourinho masterpiece of 0-0 but with some goals. No Ibramugovic should make hosts scoring and Arsenal should also get one at least.
@koziol.mutant nice
Arsenal 3 - United 2
@FootballMathematician Wrong match: this one is ManU - Arsenal
Whoscored is predicting that Mustafi could play at RB. That would be suicidal. I'm sure Wenger will NOT tamper with the 'Kostafi' partnership at the CB. We've got many other options for RB, but not Mustafi. Jenkinson is naturally the favourite tp play there.
@Valor Mustafi can play across the backline and I'd rather he plays than Jenkinson who is no threat at going forward nor is he any good at defending. Mustafi is a natural defender and is comfortable on the ball. He's not Bellerin but defensively he's much more reliable than Jenkinson will be. Rob Holding alongside Koscielny wont be a problem at all. Holding is actually a better defender than any of the United's backline. United would probably have Martial as the favorite to play on the left wing but he's off form and low in confidence. I doubt he's going to put in a shift. The team spirit at United is low right now and they do not offer any threat with this team. If Sanchez is fit to play, form of Ozil and Walcott Im expecting Arsenal to really go for it! United do not have an established XI yet. cant score goals or defend. have shocking stats for a £500m team. Their best player Mkhitaryan is not even on the bench! Arsenal's defense is much better than United's regardless! Salut
@albgunn "Do not destroy what works", said Wenger in his pre-match interview. He confirmed he isn't tampering with Kostafi partnership. What a relieve to hear this.
@albgunn- Not sure why that message posted before I clicked post but I was going to say: I think you're being harsh regarding Jenkinson. The stick he gets is largely based on a terrible performance at old Trafford 5 years ago. He is a better player now than back then and played well on a number of occasions for West Ham. I think it's worth playing him while Bellerin is out because, if it works, then we will have a genuine backup to Hector and wont need to play him in every game like last season. Ultimately we shall see, but I agree with Valor, I highly doubt Wenger will break up the Kostafi partnership. Holding is more likely to play at RB than Mustafi but it will probably be Jenkinson.
@albgunn- I think you're being harsh regarding Jenkinson. All the stick he gets is largely based on a terrible performance at old Trafford 5 years ago. He is a better player now than back then and played well on a number of occasions for
@albgunn this isn't biased or anything
@albgunn this isn't biased or anything
2-3 COYG!
Man Utd to win 3-1 with pogba on scoresheet and mom
Just seen a picture of Sanchez with some strapping on his thigh after he was taken off against Uruguay. Could just be precautionary, who knows.
@What4 it was precauction, he is fit
@koziol.mutant You're right.
No prizes for guessing Maureen 's game plan here. Let's see if the Old Travesty crowd have more patience for The Special Mong when he parks the bus at home than they did for LvG or Moyes. Let's just hope Andre "Specsavers" Marriner behaves himself this time. This fixture (Man/Arsenal or Wenger/Mourinho) has had too much bad refereeing down the years. Time for a change. Yes We Can (have good refs)! Make the Premier League Great Again! Eradicate blind refs! Blah blah blah. Etc.
12 and GG cos both teams have a weakened defence. Man Utd not too good at front but any player can score. Arsenal is hot in front with a depleted defence
@Reborn Depleted how? Because it's missing one player? What about Man U's defence? Even the master bus-parker, Mourinho, hasn't stopped Man U from conceding more than Arsenal.
hoping for a big turnout from martial this one.
So Bellerin out is a big miss but apparently Monreal, Holding and Mustafi can comfortably play at RB as well as Jenkinson being second choice RB! Big squad less problems! I think we will miss here Santi Cazorla as he is our heartbeat but Xhaka had an excellent game against Spurs and I beieve he's getting better. Ramsey I think alongside Xhaka could put Arsenal in a more offensive game but Coquelin and Xhaka against Fellaini could probably be a red card at some point! I think Arsenal have the better squad to United still as United do not have an established first XI still! I'm going for a first time bubble burst for Jose by Wenger! 0/1:2 final score!
@albgunn In my opinion, Xhaka has more tendencies to make red-card-tackles than Coquelin. Wenger is likely to start both of them while Ramsey comes on in second half, depending on the need.
@Valor Yes but Xhaka is a better passer and actually can score too. Coquelin is a pure defender only suited to break up play. Arsenal do no play this kind of game as they like to control the ball and short pass. Xhaka can initiate an attack and Coquelin cannot as his passing range is short and his spacing is not good at all. He is however a good defensive midfielder but Arsenal hardly get pinned down by any team. To add to the fluidity of Arsenal's play Xhaka is more suited to this Arsenal side. When in form the best midfielder is Ramsey at Arsenal as he's the only box2box we have. but what makes this team tick is only Santi Cazorla in the middle! We will only miss him in this game!
@albgunn I don't really know what kind of eyes u do use to watch Coq, santi brings best of Coq and their partnership was so effective just like Song and Fab,all I know is I prefer Coq to xhaka especially at the heart of that midfield and for the record Coq is a very good passer of the ball but I just like the way he keep it simple and I appreciate him a lot.
@albgunn- But Coquelin often seems to play well in big games and playing at Old Trafford is as big as it gets. Xhaka hasn't proved he's a big match player at all in his career. Actually at his time at BMG and for Switzerland, he often went missing- although he played well against Spurs so hopefully that signals a tide of change. I don't see the point of playing Xhaka and Ramsey in a game like this, Ramsey offers nothings defensively and I don't like the idea of Xhaka being the only tackler. In order to be able to play with the ball, you need to break up play and get the ball back. Coquelin does that better than anybody else in our squad so he'll play, probably with Xhaka.
@SteveHyland there is no way coq won't be there just no way
Surely Sanchez will start. And will pick up an injury during first half.
@Hidden that's bad and u will be disappointed
Manchester United should take over the game with home advantage and confidence
Yeah Wenger doesn't usually have good days against Mourinho. Hope it changes here
When people vote Paul Pogba as MoM here is hilarious! haha the guy is donkey class!
@albgunn he could celebrate here with a hat trick dont under estimate the donkey my friend...can endure better thann a horse or a cow or even an elephant
@buthethi Celebrate with a hatrick? the guy's best is 10 goals a season at Juventus and so far hast started almost all United games, 4 months into the EPL and has played in Europa league too, he's on 2 goals in EPL and 2 goals in Europa League! How will he score a hatrick against Arsenal? in warm up perhaps he will hit an empty net 3 times? LOL you are as deluded as those who paid £120m for him! I have nothing against the guy but stats never lie! Good luck saturday!
0-0
Tough game for both sides
I would rest Alexis for this game. He is playing for Chile as I type, despite having a torn muscle. Wtf?! Giroud, on the other hand, played just half an hour against the Ivory Coast. Bellerin is out for a month and Cazorla wont be fit for this game so I would go with: Cech, Jenkinson, Mustafi, Koscielny, Monreal, Coquelin, Xhaka, Walcott, Oezil, Iwobi, Giroud. I know it's Wenger's nemesis, Mr Anti-Football himself in the opposite dugout but unlike at Chelsea, he doesn't have a solid defence to base his game-plan on. Conspiracy theorists would say Zlatan intentionally got himself booked so he misses this game and the inevitable criticism he would receive after a 5-shot/No-goal match. We have shown signs this season of shedding the typical Arsenal traits which have plagued us in seasons gone by. If we win here and get 2 monkeys off our backs (winning at Old Trafford in the league and beating a Mourinho-led team) then our legitimacy as title contenders will be strengthened.
With Bellerin, Santi Cazorla and maybe Alexis not 100% fit, - I think I'm going for a Man United win. Originally thought it may be a 1-0 home win, but with the Mourinho curse and our injuries I think it will be 2-0 with a Man U counter-attack goal when Arsenal have over-committed. With Zlatan injured, Man United have a much pacier front line. 2-0 Man U Nightmare predicted.
@OvermarsWith the current squad depth, Arsenal is not reliant on any of these 3 players. Not this season. Le Prof has got options enough to win this game.
@Valor Le prof....lmao Even if jose puts our u18 side he will beat wenger.
@Valor Conceded 4 opening day to Liverpool with a weakened team.
@Overmars Er, the correct way to look at it is that we lost by 1 goal against a team that plays attacking football at the expense of its defence, while playing two kids at CB. Anyway, that game could have been a draw or a win for us, if luck had been different.
@Overmars- Yeah but Liverpool have a far more incisive attack, Coutinho and Mane scored wonder goals and we had a CB pairing a combined age of 41 playing their first competitive game together. Against Utd's attack plus with Mustafi & Koscielny playing, I don't think we'll concede 4 even with, say, Jenkinson at RB and Gibbs. I think we both know what Jose's game-plan will be and it doesn't involve getting into a football battle unfortunately.
@SteveHyland To be honest, glad Man United were far worse than I thought. Pogba for 80m is a farce. I feel we could have even test their defence more. Also, I saw LFC draw with Southampton so maybe they may lose steam as the season goes on. Chelsea are the team to watch now.
This match will go for Arsenal any how. They'll score 2/3, bcz, there r some potential defender r absent for Mou. Even Jose's men couldn't score with Ibra missing.
@SaifHasan- There's more chance of Utd scoring WITHOUT Ibrahimovic. He has taken almost 10 shots to score a goal whereas Rashford has needed less than half of that. It's only because Zlatan has been an ever-present and Marcus has played just 1 game in the #9 role that he is leading the Utd scoring charts. I wouldn't be worried about Utd's attacking threat too much if Zlatan was starting but Rashford's pace (with the ball especially) and his finishing is much more of a danger.
1 or X or 2.... totally unpredictable
12 and GG cos both teams have a weakened defence @afx
@Reborn cos both teams have a weakened defence So maybe 2-2 or 3-3?
When Arsenal play at OT their form goes out of the window - 2-1, 1-2, 4-4 who knows...
Arsenal have got an insane chance to thrash the living daylights out of the opposing club!
@jasper.james Arsenal fans said the same thing about thrashing utd last season at OT but couldn't do it and now with jose it is much more difficult. They haven't won at OT for over a decade.
@WazzaFC Actually we beat man u at Trafford in the fa cup quarter finals in 2014 with Danny welbeck scoring the winning goal and di Maria getting Sent off
@lwpgooner I was talking about the league arsenal haven't beaten us for over a decade.
Cazorla back and Zlatan suspended! I think Arsenal to win 2:0 to warm up Jose for Christmas!
@albgunn Cazorla is definitely injured, as is Bellerin. Alexis has a hamstring worry and he is playing vs Uruguay so may also be out.
@Overmars Both Cazorla and Bellerin had setbacks on their injuries but we have a better squad now and I hope we will be able to cope!
0-10 or thereabouts
@lwpgooner I would jizz my pants if this ever happened.
@lwpgooner watch this come true...
1-1
@Dalgety13 nice
Zlatan suspended.