Manchester United and Arsenal Split Points at Old Trafford, 1-1

Manchester United and Arsenal closed the 7th round of the English Premier League with a draw at the Old Trafford, 1-1. In the pale and occasionally entertaining event, we could say that neither of the sides deserved to win and that the final result matched the balance of power seen on the field.

The fans witnessed a tough fight in the opening 45 minutes of the match, with a couple of harsh tackles by both teams. There referee Kevin Friend had to show four yellow cards in that sequence in order to calm down all the players and restore order.

The last ten minutes of the half were exciting. There were chances in front of both Leno and De Gea, but only one goal took place. It was the 45th minute when Scott McTominay broke the lock of the Gunners’ defense, with a perfectly aimed shot just from outside the box.

Arsenal didn’t have a chance to recover, and the result stayed like that when both teams headed for a break. As soon as the second half began, the Gunners increased the tempo, and that paid off.

It was the 58th minute when Aubameyang quickly rushed behind the Red Devils’ back line and beat De Gea. Initially, the linesman signalized for an offside, but after watching the VAR, Friend canceled that decision and pointed towards the center. The main man to be blamed for this was the world’s most expensive center-back Harry Maguire who left behind his teammates, pulling back the offside trap.

“Well, it was a big mistake for us. We gave away an important goal. The game was well balanced. They had a few chances, we had chances,” said United’s goalkeeper following the match.

It seems that the overall impression is that Arsenal’s players went home much happier with one point here than the hosts.

Up until the end, there were several opportunities for a goal on both ends, but the execution was rather poor for any changes. The last one was in the injury time when Leno denied Marcus Rashford’s free-kick attempt. The English striker had one other fantastic chance in the first half but showed that his finishing is not at the top level as it should be.

The Gunners’ comeback is proof of their mental strength, and Aubameyang mentioned that in his on-field interview. After coming back last week vs. Aston Villa, they managed to do that again, indicating that there might be a better future for the club from North London.

“It’s not easy when you take a goal just before half-time.” said the last year’s top goalscorer along with Mane and Salah. “But we came back in the second half with great spirit. Last week we came back as well. We need to start with confidence.”

Granit Xhaka would have prevented Man United's opening goal had he not ducked out of the way. pic.twitter.com/hTa39VhUhq

— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) September 30, 2019

Arsenal is still fourth in the standings, with 12 points, nine fewer than the leading Liverpool, who was perfect in the first seven rounds. As for United, Solskjaer’s team is sitting at place No.10 with just 9 points in 7 matches. This surely wasn’t the plan before the start of the season, especially after all the money spent on the new players.

According to various bookies, the Norwegian is the first favorite for being sacked next, and only a miracle can save him now. United heads for the Netherlands to face AZ Alkmaar on Thursday in the Europa League, and after that travels to Newcastle for one tough road challenge on Sunday.

Arsenal also plays on Thursday, only Emery’s team goes to Belgium, to meet Standard Liege. Following that, the Gunners come back to London to take on Bournemouth on Sunday.