Arsenal ended a run of 29 games without a win against a big-six opponent on Super Sunday as Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s second-half penalty gave them a 1-0 victory at Old Trafford.
Manchester United were pretty much flat for long periods with Arsenal dominating play at both ends of the field, as the much talked about diamond midfield struggled to deal with the Gunners’ energy.
The visitors also had the better of the chances as Willian struck the bar while Bukayo Saka failed to place his header properly despite being unmarked.
Arsenal’s captain Pierre Emerick Aubameyang also curled an effort wide after the break, but he duly converted when he got another chance from 12 yards after Paul Pogba had fouled Hector Bellerin in the box.
The narrow win, however, ended Arsenal‘s wait for a first away win at a big-six opponent since 2015, and it happened during Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s 100th game in charge.
Paul Pogba after the match says: “We know it’s a poor performance. Myself, I cannot give a foul away like this. I thought I would touch the ball but I didn’t. [I] cost us the goal today with the penalty.
“We have to do better, the team, myself, it starts with me. I felt like I touched him a bit, I knew I was in the box, I shouldn’t have given a penalty away like that.
“Maybe I was a bit out of breath, it made me do this stupid mistake. I will learn from that, I’m not the best defensively in the box, I can work on that.”
Solskjaer adds: “We never turned up first half, that intensity, the tempo wasn’t there. Their shape was better than us. Second half it didn’t look like they were going to score, apart from the pen. We played better second half, but we have to turn up with more intensity. We weren’t at the races.
“We need to get points on the board. Last season we didn’t get that third win until the 10th game I think. Now we’re on six games, with only two wins, so we need to focus on next week at Everton.”
On the penalty: “Stay on your feet there, the boy is on his way out of the box, and Paul knows that it’s a soft penalty to give away.”
Mikel Arteta was, however, pleased with the result: “I didn’t want to tell the players we didn’t win here in 14 years, I kept it quiet.
“The team you saw tonight is where we’re starting to be. I am proud, to show the personality to play against this team at Old Trafford, I’m delighted with the win.
“They played a really tricky formation, the diamond, and I think we were really aggressive. They played two or three different formations, but I think we did really well.
“We needed this win. We shouldn’t have lost against Man City, and definitely should have lost against Leicester. Having played at Anfield, Etihad and here in the first seven games is a big ask.”
Stats and facts from the match (Backed by Opta)
- Manchester United have lost at home against Arsenal in the Premier League for the first time since September 2006, with the Gunners ending the Red Devils 13-game unbeaten run (W8 D5).
- Only Chelsea (18) have won more Premier League games against Manchester United than Arsenal, with this their 16th victory against United.
- Manchester United have taken just seven points from their six Premier League games this season, their lowest tally at this stage since David Moyes’ short stint at the helm in 2013-14 (7), a campaign in which they went on to finish 7th.
- Manchester United have failed to win any of their opening four top-flight games at Old Trafford for the first time since 1972-73, a campaign in which they finished 18th.
- Manchester United have conceded five penalties in their last seven Premier League home games; the previous five penalties they had conceded at Old Trafford in the competition came over a period of 101 games.
- Paul Pogba has conceded three penalties in the Premier League under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, while no other Manchester United player has conceded more than one.
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