2020 has kicked off with a bumper day of Premier League — and we’re not done yet.
With Chelsea, Spurs and Wolves all dropping points earlier today, Manchester United have a chance to pick up a valuable win that would move them to within two points of the top four.
Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, however, are hoping for a victory that would see them start the new year where they couldn’t finish the old one — in the top half of the table.
Kick-off at the Emirates is at 8pm.
TEAM NEWS: Arsenal have struggled against Everton, Bournemouth and Chelsea of late, managing just two goals and two points, but there’s no shortage of firepower in that attack.
Arsenal: Leno, Maitland-Niles, Sokratis, Luiz, Kolasinac, Xhaka, Torreira, Pepe, Ozil, Aubameyang, Lacazette.
TEAM NEWS: The main talking point from the visitors’ team is the absence, once again, of Paul Pogba. He’s still struggling with his ankle injury, by all accounts, but no doubt we’ll get more info on that over the course of the evening.
Manchester United: De Gea, Wan-Bissaka, Lindelof, Maguire, Shaw, Matic, Fred, James, Lingard, Rashford, Martial.
The teams are just making their way out onto the Emirates pitch. Arsenal and United have given us some crackers over the years, and for whoever has chosen this over the darts or whatever Christmas film is on RTÉ, hopefully we’ll get a bit of New Year’s entertainment at the very least.
Who do you fancy?
KICK OFF: We’re up and running. Arsenal, in case you needed to be reminded, have lost their last three at home in the league…
3 mins – Daniel James wins an early footrace against Sead Kolasinac, who tries to subtly bundle him to the ground, but isn’t quite as inconspicuous as he thinks. He goes into the book. Fred’s free kick is punched clear by Leno.
4 mins – Brief moment of concern for United fans there as Anthony Martial was moving a bit gingerly after David Luiz clattered through the back of him. He seems ok though.
5 mins – Maitland-Niles gives the ball away cheaply in midfield, allowing United to counter, and the Arsenal man can thank Xhaka for tracking back to snuff out the danger on his behalf.
GOAL FOR ARSENAL! Arsenal 1-0 Manchester United (Pepe, 8′)
Arsenal lead and it’s Nicolas Pepe who has the hosts in front with pretty much their first attack of the game.
Kolasinac creates it, picking up Aubameyang’s pass inside the box and then cutting it back through the defender’s leg to Pepe, who makes no mistake with the finish.
The Emirates erupts!
10 mins – Nicolas Pepe is here to play ball! He’s just left Luke Shaw on his backside in the United box with a lovely bit of close control. He clips it to the back post where Aubameyang tries a pretty ambitious scissors kick which has the right direction but not the right height.
15 mins – Jesse Lingard arrives as late as (insert bus operator of choice here) and catches Torreira. Free kick and nothing more.
20 mins – Arsenal are trying to get Kolasinac into the game as much as possible out on the left, which is pitting him in a pretty tasty battle against Wan-Bissaka. The United defender wins this exchange, nicking the ball away and clearing.
21 mins – Kolasinac skips away from Fred in midfield and then shifts the ball out wide to Aubameyang. He crosses off the outside of his right boot but there’s nobody in the United box to get on the end of it.
25 mins – Smashing take and turn from Lacazette but the final ball is pretty aimless, unfortunately for Arsenal. After a bright start from United, the hosts have been pretty much in control for the majority of this first half.
30 mins – A moment or two after clipping Ozil late, Maguire catches Lacazette across the back with a leading arm as the two jump for the ball. The first one is a free; the second, somehow, isn’t.
32 mins – SHOULD BE 2-0! Lacazette rolls Harry Maguire inside the box and has a golden opportunity to score, but he goes with his left foot rather than his right, and skews it badly out of play for a throw-in.
33 mins – Torreira! Just wide. He pushes on from midfield and is there to collect the ball on the edge of the box, but his shot whistles just past the post with De Gea at full stretch. United can’t say they haven’t been warned, more than once at this stage.
38 mins – BASE OF THE POST! How are Arsenal not 2-0 up at this stage? David de Gea can breathe a huge sigh of relief here because he was culprit number one, failing to clear his lines under pressure from Lacazette and giving the ball straight to Pep. He cut back inside and bent a shot towards the left post — another inch to the right and it was in.
40 mins – This just about sums it up…
Man Utd haven't had a shot since their effort after just 26 seconds 😐#ARSMUN LIVE: https://t.co/49H7w3R7pG pic.twitter.com/w0QRShpKDK
— Match of the Day (@BBCMOTD) January 1, 2020
GOAL FOR ARSENAL! Arsenal 2-0 Manchester United (Sokratis, 42′)
And there it is! Arsenal get their second, and you can’t say it hasn’t been coming.
This one is 99% down to a rasper of an Ozil corner, flicked on by Lacazette at the near post. De Gea does really well to stop it from going in but he can only palm it to Sokratis who is three yards out and won’t have many easier chances.
45 mins – One additional minute to be played. United and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer must be praying for the break.
HALF TIME: Arsenal 2-0 Manchester United
Well well well… mull that one over while we make ourselves a cup of tea.
SECOND HALF: No changes from either side. We’re back underway.
51 mins – Doesn’t look like it will be too much longer before Ole Gunnar Solskjaer makes his first change. Pereira and Williams are both out getting warmed up on the touchline.
53 mins – Chance for Arsenal to hit United on the break but Aubameyang rushes the pass and it’s easy for United to cut out.
55 mins – Fred tries his luck from 20+ yards, warming Leno’s hands but not really causing him any trouble.
56 mins – Looks like two United changes are imminent, and it’ll be Greenwood and Pereira.
57 mins — Manchester United substitutions: Pereira comes on to replace Lingard, who leaves to a chorus of boos, and Greenwood replaces James.
59 mins – And that’s very nearly a perfect instant impact from Pereira, who smashes the ball into the side-netting at Leno’s near post. A rare contribution from Matic who did well to create the opportunity, with Pereira just staying onside, but Leno had it covered.
62 mins – Luke Shaw is bundled off the ball in midfield and Arsenal zip down the field. Ozil plays a beaut of a pass off the outside of his boot, Aubameyang tries to pick out Lacazette in the middle, but Maguire is able to shepherd him away from goal.
63 mins — Arsenal substitution: Arteta makes his first change and it’s the goalscorer Nicolas Pepe who gets called ashore; Reiss Nelson comes on.
68 mins — Arsenal substitution: The Gunners’ second change is going to be an enforced one as Sead Kolasinac, who was so dangerous in the first half particularly, goes down holding his ankle. Bukayo Saka takes his place.
70 mins – Wan-Bissaka dinks the ball past Aubameyang and then goes down in a heap in the Arsenal box. Referee Christopher Kavanagh is insistent that it’s not a penalty and the VAR check backs him up — whatever contact there was there was incidental at best.
72 mins – In case it hasn’t been evident enough from the run of play, Arsenal are making hard work of this for a team that were 2-0 up and running the show for long spells. United are pressing and the weight of pressure is beginning to show around the Emirates. Greenwood tries Leno at his near post and forces a smart save down low.
74 mins – Good cross from Wan-Bissaka, good header from Sokratis who wasn’t about to be outjumped or outmuscled by Rashford. United corner.
75 mins – Twice, Fred puts balls into the Arsenal box, and twice, Leno comes and clears the danger with strong punches.
78 mins – A rare Arsenal chance in this second half but it’s high and wide from Lacazette.
79 mins – Saka uses his fresh legs to good effect, running at United, but the end product is tame and easy for De Gea to deal with.
80 mins – Half-chance for Lacazette but he gets his feet in a muddle and it’s wasted. Better from Arsenal in these last few minutes, but every time they come forward, United sense an opportunity at the other end.
81 mins — Manchester United substitution: Solskjaer’s final change sees Mata replace Matic.
82 mins — Arsenal substitution: Matteo Guendouzi has been waiting on the sideline for the last few minutes. Torreira seemed the obvious candidate to come off, but Lacazette has pulled up sharply on a couple of occasions in the last few minutes and he’s the man to come off instead.
88 mins – Chance for Arsenal to kill the game as Aubameyang breaks and crosses, but Nelson can’t get on the end of it.
89 mins – A minute plus whatever else to play and maybe now, for the first time, the Arsenal fans are starting to believe that they might be alright here.
90 mins – Four additional minutes go up on the board as the home fans remind us that Arsenal FC are “by far the greatest team the world has ever seen”…
90+2 mins – David Luiz is announced as the BT Sport Man of the Match.
90+4 mins – Fred sizes up a free-kick 20 yards out with a chance to give United some faint glimmer of hope, and instead gives the Arsenal fans a bit of a laugh as he skies it into the stands.
FULL TIME: Arsenal 2-0 Manchester United
There it is! A huge result for Mikel Arteta and for Arsenal, and they’re soaking it up in the Emirates.
The Gunners move up to 10th — back in the top half — and for all of their woes, they’re just four points behind Manchester United in fifth.
It’s another hugely disappointing night for Manchester United and Solskjaer, who managed just three shots on target against an opponent who have been in total disarray of late.
That’s all from us for now but we’ll have more reaction and analysis over the course of the evening. Thanks for reading.
