Arsenal vs. Manchester United - The controversial view point
Some of you will wonder why I gave this article its title. Well it’s because I have views on the above mentioned match which you won’t find any where else!
Is that a boast? Hell NO!
I’m just sick and tired of watching dishonest commentary on the game and reading more &%$# opinion from Manchester United and Arsenal fans all over the place.
Rant one: The myth that Arsenal taught Manchester United a “footballing lesson�.
Who told you? Since when did a one-nil victory acquired from one silly error from an opposing player result into a “footballing lesson�? I have since seen worse things this weekend like Hleb and Ljungberg getting ratings of 8 for their performances on some websites. What? Hleb’s apart form one tackle he made on Ronaldo in the first half was the invisible man incarnate. Baptista in his small cameo did far more in 5 minutes than Hleb did all night. Making Arsenal far tighter and contributing to the diminishing performance of O’shea in the second half. Ljunberg was in Neville’s pocket for 90 minutes. I dare you to disprove it…..
Rant two: The “accomplished performance of Djourou who kept Rooney quiet?�
Please! Any kid could see after only 10 minutes of the games Rooney was clearly out of match practice and far from fit. His 3 games lay off had clearly affected him more badly than Scholes. In fact his beginning the match was based on name not form at all. So how tell me can one judge Djourou as “good� when he was effectively marking an unfit and off form opponent?
Rant three: Arsenal deserved the win.
Did they have more shots on target than Manchester United? No! Did United’s keeper make more crucial saves than Lehmann? No! Did Arsenal have none of the defensive lapses like United had? No! (Remember Lehman’s throw for the “smash face incident� and Djorou’s that Evra stopped resulting in a fantastic save from the German). Last but not least; did they score form open play or a fantastic move? No!
So where did this footballing lesson ^%$& and Arsenal are not still in transition come from? If Arsenal plays their game in hand against a team that makes no defensive errors, expect no goals. They are just not dangerous enough and save for Rosicky and Baptista never ever shoot!
Rant four: Fergie made the wrong substitutions.
Please! Scholes who had been suspended for 3 games was on a yellow card and clearly tired and frustrated as a result of O’shea’s dwindling efficiency and his lack of match practice. Rooney was not at the races. Fergie takes them off. We start creating chances again, forcing two world class saves from Lehmann in the process. So if Ronaldo had never made his error, do you really think Manchester United would have lost? Blame it on the substitutes. How intelligent.
Rant five: The starting line up was wrong.
How? Carrick who people are rooting for was poor against Celtic for most of the game and like Rooney was also lacking in match practice. Does that amount to as some are claiming Fergie having no faith in him by dropping him for Sunday? As for Fletcher, he was excellent vs. Celtic so was Scholes. Rooney was Ok though but is not known at United for great off the bench appearances. So come Sunday the line up was obvious. O’shea had to replace Carrick, most especially because he was yet to have a bad game vs. the gunners and was the fitted of the 2 players. A striker had to be on the bench and Rooney wouldn’t fit the bill. And Fletcher surprise, surprise was in form and did perform vs. the Arsenal. So with the above facts was the line up wrong? Um?
The only thing I can say from this game is that Ronaldo’s mistake let Arsenal and Liverpool back in the title race if and only if they can win their respective games in hand. Plus United’s good start to the season was wasted since Chelsea are level on points with them and United have lost at home to one of the big three. In addition United’s defense without Vidic and Heinze is too damn sloppy. However all is not lost.
If before Manchester United meet the next big side, Carrick, Scholes and Rooney are back to match fitness and Vidic and Heinze are back in the rear plus Smith’s return to the bench will allow Solksjaer to play on the wing reducing the pain of Giggs’ three week absence. In all probability ending the O’shea in midfield experiment.
That’s not such a bad future now is it?
Fair enough, entitled to your opinion. As am I. My opinion is that we obviously weren’t watching the same game. Oh, and when pretty much everyone else has a juxtaposed view to yourself, yes, it could mean that they’re all stupid and that you’re the only one who knows what they’re talking about. Alternatively, it could mean that you’re an arse.
I wonder who you support….i think anyone who watched the game would agree arsenal deserved to win. they’re better than united and that’s obvious. you do make some good points though.
One-nil to the Arsenal!
I have no qualms towards Man Utd. I’m just sorry you got terrible sour grapes!
What’s that coming over the hill? It’s Adebayor!
Decent article from a Man Utd Fan.Let me start by saying the question of arsenal deserving to win, is based on the fact that we (arsenal) had the clearest of chances compared to Man Utd FACT.here is why, we should really have scored that penalty, adebayor, Baptista, had a one on one, chance with thei keeper.Yes utd should have scored, with the Ronaldo effort, but they had after that almost half chances compared to the arsenals.Besides, almost all the goals in the premiership are scored because of a mistake in one way or the other, and therefore Arsenal having had the most possesion and overal playing the more conent football, DESERVED TO HAVE WON
which game were you watching my friend, even a blind man can tell a different story from what really transpired,excuses dont build a team, why field off form players anyway, where is the depth at Man United, get serious and stop insulting our football intelligence my fried
Stopped reading at Rant 1, when you failed to mention that Hleb put the ball through to Adebayor, gifting him a wonderful chance that led to us winning the penalty.
If you don’t actually watch the game, what’s the point of listening to your criticism?
Explain how the goal was not scored in open play?
what a bitter old twat you are! hahah, I cant do anything but laugh. And the most disturbing thing of it, you’re wrong. Atleast partly. Rant three; Arsenal deserved the win. You claim that Arsenal didnt have more shots at/off target than Utd. That is wrong. Read the OFFICIAL statistics! You claim that Arsenal is not good enough if the opposition doesnt make any def. errors, since we’re not in transition. That is wrong. Arsenal is just out of form.Just about all XI players were and played in Germany. Arsenal have outplayed all their previous opponents this term. Incl. United. Arsenal even had all the possession, except the first minutes.
Thats just about ONE of your claims. I wont go into the others, as that would force me to start my own blog.
And btw; Don’t be that bitter. It’s just so sad to read what you write. Even Ferguson and Neville, United through and through, accepted United deserved to lose, because Arsenal WERE better.
One more thing. People said Carrick should play instead of O’Shea, because he’s much more creative and still play defensive. And even though C. played bad ag. Celtic, O’shea didn’t prove his worth at Sunday after all.
Salute THE ARSENAL!
watched it on a internet feed \’soccer\’ site didn\’t he, what does he know??
point where u say we didn\’t score from open play = fabregas defence spliting pass to adey was not \’open play\’. Maybe he thinks \’open play\’ is sumthing to do with golf.
Gary Neville had Ljungberg in his pocket?
Shame that Neville stuck to Ljungberg like glue when Rosicky was ruining your midfield - didn\’t take on the responsibility did he??
did we have more shots on target, more shots off target, more possesion and more territorial advatage than U? Read the stats and weep my friend-:
Manchester United Team Statistics Arsenal
0 Goals 1
0 1st Half Goals 0
5 Shots on Target 6
6 Shots off Target 7
4 Blocked Shots 3
10 Corners 5
12 Fouls 13
4 Offsides 4
2 Yellow Cards 2
0 Red Cards 0
78.8 Passing Success 80.5
33 Tackles 26
81.8 Tackles Success 84.6
48.5 Possession 51.5
49 Territorial Advantage 51
Let’s jus say Arsenal were better on the night, however being a Utd fan you have your own view. I think most UTD fans would agree that Arsenal had the better of Utd. PRAISE WHEN PRAISE IS DUE. This article would have not been published had Arsenal taken all their changes to score. UTD were lucky to have their keeper on pitch after the penalty incident. If we were at our best, it could have been 3 nil. Take it on the chin buddy. This football, you win some & you lose some. This time it was loss so be humble and accept it. Come on Gunners.. the title race is still on… Wenger is the best !
As a united fan, I must say I disagree with most of your rants
Rant 1 - footballing lesson.
We were bossed in the midfield by lightweights who played within themselves and controlled the game very, very easily. In response, we had O’Shea, who had no one to bodycheck, and Scholes, who had to mop up in defence because O’Shea didn’t have the tactical nous to intercept the midfielders.
O’Shea had a bad game - he’s no Phil Neville.
Rant 2 - agree with you there.
Rant 3 - did arsenal deserve to win?
on our performance? I’d say without Ronaldo’s mistake, it should have been a draw. Having said that, one of our best chances came AFTER the goal. Arsenal had the measure of United in the game.
Rant 4 - the wrong subs
Rooney on the pitch, even ineffective, is better than Fletcher playing the game of his life at RM. Solskjaer should have come on for Fletcher, especially at a point when we needed an attacking threat to win the game. Similarly, Carrick should have come on for O’Shea.
Where would Scholes be missed more - last 20 minutes of a game against Arsenal or 90 minutes against Reading? I’d chose the former, every single time.
Rant 5 - wrong starting lineup
Tiredness is not a good enough excuse - we have a week’s break after the Arsenal game, so why not play your best side in a match that, if we had won, would have greatly stacked the odds against Arsenal for their Premiership title chase?
Fletcher had a good game against Arsenal (as much as he can have a good game), but O’Shea’s selection was wrong considering that Arsenal’s midfield was considerably light-weight. We either needed an enforcer in the Keano mould to take control of the game (we don’t have such a player, especially since we sold off Butt and Neville, Giggs is injured and Keano is retired) or a creative player alongside Scholes to hold the midfield together (something Carrick does quite well).
Carrick was the logical choice - I’m sure Ferguson had his reasons, but I was disagreeing with the lineup even before the match started.
Fletcher, I don’t have a problem with because Solskjaer can’t always play 90 mins. However, why not start with Richardson on the left and then take HIM off at around 60-70 mins and bring Ole on for him?
United had a stale look to them.
Well, I agree that the match was not as one-sided as many in the media are portraying it. However, if Arsenal are a team in transition, having reached the European CL final by beating Real Madrid and Juventus and keeping 10 clean sheets in a row, long may that transition last!!!
deserved to win? surely the fact they won without recourse to any underhanded tactics is sufficient evidence that arsenal “deserved to win”?
It was from open play, and it was certainly a good, incisive, quick move.
I am an Arsenal fan and I agree with most of what you said. I disagree on rant 3 though. I think Arsenal deserved to win - narrowly. I believe all the hype in the media following the game was that this was a hugely unexpected result (given Arsenal’s recent league form compared to Man U’s). And when Arsenal won, everyone was so thrown that they overreacted.
The reality is that Man U are still 7 points ahead of Arsenal. But the result does restore some confidence in the Arsenal team for their upcoming games.
Sorry mate but thats the funniest thing ive read in ages. Thanks for that.
What game were you watching?
OK. Actually agree with most of what you say here. I did think it odd that Carrick wasn’t picked to start but he didn’t exactly set the match alight when he came on and O’Shea had a decent first half, so maybe Fergie wasn’t so wrong in his initial judgement after all.
The one major disagreement is the idea that Arsenal didn’t deserve to win. I’d agree that it was by no means a ‘footballing lesson’ but the only way you win a game without deserving it is if the ref makes an almighty cock-up. United had great chances and just didn’t put them away. Adebayor had a great chance and did put it away.
It pains me to say it but Arsenal did deserve the win.
By the way, Jonny B, “juxtaposed” (as in “pretty much everyone else has a juxtaposed view to yourself”) is a great word isn’t it? I wonder what it means…
Rant one: The myth that Arsenal taught Manchester United a “footballing lesson
This is a fact. Wenger changes his formation accordingly n his “kids” teach Man Utd how to play. It is a fact that Farbegas is better than Carrick. Hleb did nothing??? He is someone who holds the ball well, can dribble, always track back n releases Eboue at the right time. Ljunberg need not do anything as he is already strectching Gary n pulling him out of position.
Rant two: The “accomplished performance of Djourou who kept Rooney quiet?�
Basically he marked Rooney well irregardless Rooney is matched fit or not.
Rant three: Arsenal deserved the win
Definately. They look Fresher, faster, more direct n creative.
Rant four: Fergie made the wrong substitutions.
Agree to some extend as Rooney is a player who can score a spectacular goal. That is the reason why Wenger seldom substitute Henry out when they are chasing a game
Rant five: The starting line up was wrong.
Freguson fielded his strongest team. With Scholes n Oshea in midfield, they do a lot of tackling n tracking back. If Scholes is not there, Adebayor would have scored from e corner. With Carrick in the team, I think Man Utd’s midfield will be overrun by Rosicky, Farbegas n Hleb.
Goals are scored because of a mistake or ones ability to make the other to punish by its mistake in one way or the other.
It’s bitter a defeat to swallow. But u have to. Coz that’s what a game is. a better side winning.
Dude u made no point, whatsoever.
i can see the controvesy of your article
shame you seems to know so little about football.
btw, did you watch the game?
The points I think your trying to make in your own bitter manc way is that the game was closer than has been portrayed and that a draw would not have been an unfair result (a man u win would have been) and that Arsenal still have more to do to dispell all the critism that they have received lately. I was at the Boro game and if we take Sheff Utd lightly as a result of winning ta OT we may find ourselfs 0-1 down again at home chasing the game against 11 defenders. Arsenal need to take the application they showed against Utd in to all their games home or away big or small teams.
Apparently, you thought that with Henry and RVP missing, with no wins and low confidence, you just had to turn up to win. In simple terms, that is arrogance, just as Ronaldo’s stepover was in the middle of the park leading to the goal.
Why can you not admit that you were outplayed? The truth is, Arsenal played so much better, and with our fast passing you were unable to butcher us like you did in Oct 04. Your team cannot play without some form of physicality, and in truth you deserve all the abuse your insane rantings are attracting.
Arsenal turned up to your place, having had a shaky start to the season and with questions about team spirit hanging over them, and spanked you in front of a new record attendence. How sweet was that??
This is the first time in ages that you’ve decided not to simply try and kick us off the park but look what happens when you try and play us at football? You get beat! By kids! The man of the match (Cesc) is only 19 - he made Rooney look like he was 45!
Face it, your great start to the season was due to not having to play a decent team and as soon as you did you got beat. Hopefully we’re over the effects of having nearly our whole squad at the World Cup and can really hit some form now, because - unlike Man U - I think we now have the strength in depth to really compete.
You attempt to make a case due to injuries/tiredness of your United side. But you fail to mention: AFC played CL football like yourselves on the same night AND Henry & RVP were not fit for the match. Without even mentioning that with your rant about fitness/injuries, you come off with little or no credibility.
As a United fan, I must admit…
Arsenal deserved to win. They played great!
United deserved to lose. They played shite.
I don’t buy this crap about “tired” and “out-of-form”, etc.
Two Reasons:
1. We’re a big club and should have depth in the squad to deal with that.
2. For the money that these players get paid, I would expect far, far more.
Keep in mind…
These people get per week, much more than what most of us get per year. Considering that most of us are required to work (and perform our best) even though we are tired, exhausted (how many times did I not work 12 hour shifts?), then why the hell cannot we expect this of these young millionaires? Honestly, I’m pretty sure my 55 year old father would have performed better on the pitch if someone promised him a million bucks afterwards.
I think Arsenal won because we are hungrier and mentally stronger. The fact that we fielded a side that is without the injured Henry, Van Persie, Senderos and Clichy says it all…
Whilst you would love your views to be regarded as controversial, they are in actual fact mundane, bland and fairly typical of most bloggers supporting their team. If Ferguson and Neville can freely accept that Arsenal deserved to win why can’t you?
The author of this article is gonna get sued by Ashley Cole for writing an unlicensed “My Defence II”.
You are right, completely and utterly right in everything that you say. Everything.
I’m glad I read this blog as it has comfirmed what I have always suspected - the pundits in the Sky studio know nothing. Arsene Wenger knows nothing, as does Alex Ferguson. Gary Neville also knows nothing about the game. Alan Hansen knows nothing. Roy Keane knows nothing. Gary Lineker and Lee Dixon also know nothing. Actually, everyone previously thought qualified to comment or analyse football is now rendered useless after your insightful analysis and comment.
It must be very peaceful in your world. Muppet.
you were definitely watching a different game to me. please, arsenal deserved it by a mile. you say that rooney was unfit so Djorou didn’t necessarily put in a good perfomance against him. bull. arsenal vs middlesbrough. henry is clearly unfit but woodgate still gave him no chance. so are you saying woodgate didn’t put in a good perfomance because henry is unfit. next time plz watch the match that you are making the article on.
I wish we could play you every week, especially if you leave Brown, O’Shea, Evra & Fletcher in the side! Imagine if TH had been fit!
Turns out one massively overpriced signing every summer may not be enough…
Can I just say as a gooner that I’m pretty impressed by the number of United fans in this discussion who are putting their hand up and saying “Arsenal played better than us”. I’d like to say that the same would be true of us gooners if the tables were turned, however, knowing some of my gooner brethren, I’m not so sure that they’d all be quite so magnanimous (most would be; but I doubt that it would be this universal). Hats off to ya!
One-nil to the Arsenal!
One-nil to the Arsenal!
One-nil to the Arsenal!
One-nil to the Arsenal!
One-nil to the Arsenal!
One-nil to the Arsenal!
We have a sayingh & it says “Be different if you want to be mentioned ”
Don’t forget last time we have beaten by the ManUsa 2-4 with more weakened ManUsa team.
It’s just funny to read this.
You were not watching the same game in saying that Hleb did not play well; or at some degree, it is not your fault if you are a bit short in detecting a good footballer.
see above
Looking at the highlights the match did look even-ish, apart from one team taking their chance. But watching the actual match Arsenal did more than just shade it. United’s saving grace, which they will always have under Ferguson, is the balls to go forward and occassionally create great chances (helps when Eboue goes awol) from the movement of the front men and positioning of the attacking midfielders. But when playing against a world class keeper your team selection will have to create more chances, doing so through sustained pressure. ManU had very few moments of sustained pressure compared to Arsenal, without which ManU will suffer against Chelsea, Liverpool, Arsenal and the champion’s league. Having Giggs and Rooney back on form will help immensely, and maybe you’ll get the three points back at Emirates. Meantime, take some points off Chelsea, please.
This was my review of the match. In it, are all my arguments!
Devilishly bad!
Arsene Wenger’s 11, without the likes of Henry and other experienced campaigners (through retirement or idiotic transfers) absolutely outclassed a hapless United side which had so many things going wrong; it’s a wonder how they managed to lose just by 1 goal to non.
United didn’t look threatening for most of the game, giving the ball to their opponents like it were on a clearance sale. Arsenal on the other hand were far more hungry and determined to get a result at Old Trafford that hadn’t seen United lose since their meeting with Blackburn last year if I am not mistaken. What went wrong? Here’s everything –
1. Ronaldo’s failure to finish – Don’t get me wrong. He was probably United’s best player on the pitch, but he had the best chance to put one past Lehmann, but he went for power – and as lovely as it was to see the German get one smack on his face, it would have been lovelier to see Man U 1 – 0 Arsenal.
2. Darren Fletcher – Fletch is a guy who slogs and slogs and slogs, but can’t seem to deliver… and it’s about bloody time he did. He should have been carded for playing horribly after his cross from the right in the first half went 20 rows back. Sorry fletch, it’s not the spectator wearing the Rooney jersey that wants the ball, it’s Wayne Rooney who needs it!
3. Rooney and Scholes’ 3 game suspension – A ridiculous decision, I felt United really paid for it as both of them looked like they needed another game to be in their best shape, even though Scholes had a great game against Celtic.
4. Squad Selection – I am sure Sir Alex knows better than all the United fans in the world, but I didn’t see much sense in O’ Shea starting ahead of Carrick. I thought it was a very defensive approach from a team that was tipped to be favorites of this fixture.
5. Fatigue – After a two week international break, preceded and followed by 3 games in 7 days, we seemed so obviously tired. If we had played Arsenal last week instead of Tottenham, the score line might have been a little different.
6. Hunger to win(or rather, the lack of it) – United looked to be playing for a draw as they knew the point would keep them on top of the table. Instead, we are tied with Chelsea on points, and second because of our better(for a friggin change) goal difference.
Right now, it’s the Gunners who have the result, their first in 9 attempts against United in the league, and the bragging rights that come with it. 20th January, 2007 is when the Devils will exact their revenge.
Thank you Arsenal for defeating us. You have made us angrier and aching to punish teams that come our way. Watch out League, here we come!
As an Arsenal fan one of the few things I admire about SAF and the ManU crowd (in general) is that they are sportsmen enough to give an opposing team their due. I guess you are an exception.
OTOH I hope SAF listens to your rant and plays the same team next time we play each other, lol.
Hmm, official stats would be from the Premier League (go to their website). From there click on Actim stats and lookup the game for yourself - you get this;
Key match stats
Man Utd v Arsenal - 17 Sep 2006
Scorers: Scorers: Adebayor, E (86)
Shots on goal: 9 Shots on goal: 7
Corners: 10 Corners: 5
Free kicks: 17 Free kicks: 15
Yellow cards: 2 (Brown, Scholes) Yellow cards: 2 (Lehmann, Toure)
Red cards: 0 Red cards: 0
Off-sides: 4 Off-sides: 4
United had more shots on goal, more corners and more free kicks.
This is exactly what happened in last season’s champions league.
Arsenal defeated Madrid and Juve and were praised all around for their display. But the actual scoreline was only 1-0 and 2-0.
That time we had the same bitter ManU fans coming in droves saying all that praise was undeserved and those teams were crap. Actually Arsenal could have scored 3 in the first 15 minutes at Madrid and had lots and lots of chances against Juve in the first leg too.
Whenever we play 451, the other team rarely have a chance against us.
Fact is, Arsenal created all the chances from open play and bossed the midfield.
ManU were at home, and were playing long balls for much of the match.
Your only goal scoring oppurtunities came from Arsenal’s mistakes. Lehman throwing the ball into danger and Eboue’s misjudgement.
Otherwise Arsenal were in complete control and by the 70th minute your whole team was knackered and totally miserable.
Ljungberg was much better then Ronaldo. And Djorou hardly put a foot wrong. Contrary to what Rio thinks, you dont judge a defender by his hollywood tackles but by the end result.
Rooney has caused Senderos problems in the past and Djorou who is even younger, played with great confidence and even had the nerve to take the ball upfield and run past 3 or so ManU players.
If Hleb was invisible, what about Fletcher or O’Shea? What about Scholes?
And if you look at the team sheet-:
Hleb Fabregas Gilberto Rosicky Ljungberg
VS
Ronaldo O’Shea Scholes Fletcher
Arsenal clearly have the better players.
Face it. Arsenal deserved to win by much more.
What’s up with this fatigue argument that so many are peddling about on this post?
Arsenal played a Champions League match in Hamburg, GERMANY the same night United played one AT HOME. Arsenal had all its main players away from international duty at the same time as United as well.
So even if there was fatigue, both teams were pretty much on the same level.
Valid points made all around, but this fatigue argument is absolute nonsense.
I often celebrate the democratic nature of the Internet. That is until I read the biased, skewed piece that you’ve just imposed on the world. Sometimes a contraversial viewpoint is original, witty and outside the box. To claim that you have views that ‘you won’t find anywhere else’ is ridiculous. You merely lay out the pathetic qualms of every bitter man utd fan. When we beat you in the FA cup final, that wasn’t deserved. To intimate that what happened on Sunday was unjust is insulting to the intelligence. Arsenal created a wealth of good chances, missed a penalty and scored from sloppy play from Ronaldo. To say that this was lucky is harsh- Ronaldo is infamous for messing around with the ball where he shouldn’t. He just doesn’t learn. Fabregas was good enough to make a goal out of a promising situation. How were you hard done by? You had chances, granted, but I as an Arsenal fan have come to accept the pain and frustration of not taking chances. You should too. Your piece was contraversial because it wasn’t in anyway true.
Oooh I’ll give you the controversial version; There was a massive bust-up before the match involving RVN’s mate, VDS. There was a hair dryer & a boot & a burst blood vessel. All the lads went out sulking, especially the young ones like Rooney because he had to listen to some shouting.
no lauren, clichy, diaby, senderos, henry, van persie all of which would be regular first teamers, henry being the best player in the world & many say arsenal are shite w/o him…
if ur players are tired dont play them, use your depth, this suggests ours is better. plus our youth team is the best in the world.
we had better passing & movement, always looked the more likely, most purpose. no team in england can match us for playing football, tho i would like them to shoot more often.
last season was our worst in ten yrs & we reached the CL final.
with the players we have coming through, last season will be our worst for 15 yrs. when is the last time utd got a decent player for less than £15?? carrick, rooney, ronaldo, ferdinand, veron, van nistlerooy… as bad as chelsea!!
You,ve made some good points - Mainly this was a very close and hard fought game but the team Fergie chose was the best one you had available- by far. Fletcher and O’Shea are excellent players who have played brilliantly this year so far and both played well.
Everything is relative-Arsenal looked more dangerous against United than they had done for years and I think that their close passing and Adebayor made them less predictable. Ade was surprisingly excellent and effective as a lone attacker against your back 4. I don’t agree about Hleb- he was very effective in midfield- you only started to get a grip when he tired. Neville did play well and Ljungberg didn’t do anything. I don’t agree about Rooney- he was only marginally below par- he was well policed- particuarly by Gallas- and wasn’t given the room he usually likes. Djourou was good also overall- However the main weakness you had was in your tactics - United failed to put real pressure on Arsenal’s right back whose penalty box defending is dire -nevertheless, despite all this, It was Lehman who won Arsenal the game with 2 crucial saves- both also had a tinge of luck especially the save from Ronaldo.
I am a United fan, and I have to say that Arsenal thoroughly deserved their victory! We were outplayed, out-thought, and, more worryingly , outFOUGHT by the Gunners. For a team to come to O.T. and have the amount of possession they enjoyed is a disgrace. The likes of Fletcher and O’Shea are blocking the other young lads such as Evans, Jones and Martin (lads with REAL talent!) from coming through. And as for the BENCH!!! I would love to hear Fergies logic in having 1 youth-team goalie; 2 long-term sick (who cannot POSSIBLY be match fit!); 1 winger-turned-fullback; and a man who most people thought would never play again, as subs in a match as important as Sundays’. Arsenal deserved the win. End of !
I often agree with some of these blogs and am surprised at the lack of actual footballing insight you display in your comments. I was in the stretford end for the game and saw Hleb run rings round our midfield in the 1st half and an Arsenal team dominate pretty much all of the 2nd half apart from two United chances.
Truth is, United played a team of players that were not suited to playing against arsenal. We needed someone biting at their heels, breaking up the play so our pacy forward line could come into play more. Instead we had O’Shea who since his first season lookis like a player who has put on about a stone in weight, probably from booozing, has lost all his pace and cannpt pass a ball forward to “save his life”.
I can take defeat as I am a grown up and do not listen to all the United baiting following a defeat - I advise you to take this comment onboard. At teh end of the day, who cartes what people say about us - we’re still the bollocks and will make a massive title push this year. Arsenal are no threat
Rant#3 is the best, did we score from open play? YES WE DID!
Gerry agree with much of what you say but do you really believe that O’Shea and Fletcher are ‘excellent players’? For a long time now, a lot of people have been wondering what it is that Fletcher does behind closed doors to warrant his place. He works hard and sometimes that counts for something, but most games he is shown to be completely average and untalented. O’Shea was an excellent youngster when he played left back, but he has not fulfilled that promise. I honestly think that O’Shea playing central midfield is one of the worst players I’ve ever seen in the premiership- his passing and dribbling are at time embarassing. It is an insult to Roy Keane.
The real ‘contraversial’ views are pete and ash because you guys are humble enough to call a spade a spade. How this guy wrote that article when even Fergie admitted defeat, I do not know. Next time can we have one of you writing on this site?
“At teh end of the day, who cartes what people say about us - we’re still the bollocks and will make a massive title push this year. Arsenal are no threat”
Hear, Hear!
You were warned before you reed it all. It’s controversial. Ha Ha Ha!
And by the way thanks Jeff for the correct stats……
And thanks to all of y’all for the interesting comments.Keep ‘em comming:Controversy is a wonderful thing!
or fucks sake!arsenal deserved to win but never destroyed or embarresed us.
thanks for your unbiased and accurate view of the game, the way people are moaning about your comments shows a complete lack of judgement i certainly feel that arsenal were very lucky to win this game, ok they did well in midfield but that doesn’t tell the whole story does it, rooney and scholes were obviously suffering from a lack of games undoubtedly due to the intervention of david dein sympathisers on the fa and it was only down to a schoolboy mistake by the genius that is ronaldo, we clearly made chance after chance and were it not for a clear conspiracy by the FA, the ref, the assistant refs, the commentators, the queen and finally god himself then utd clearly would have won
Arsenal weren’t very good. Man United weren’t very good.
It was a poor game and my understanding of Arsenal’s problems hasn’t changed one iota.
They’re still reliant on Wenger’s PR, and they will greviously underachieve this season.
Been away for a week for hols now and we lost with much thanks to Rooney, Scholes and Wenger’s who once tabooed the 4-5-1 tactic. We were run all over the park and Rooney is just off form that night. Nothing more nothing less. Rooney’s form hasn’t let up after Reading’s match and also Benfica. He seriously needs time on the bench and let Solskjaer take his place for a while. And with Scholes playing in the hole, we just reverted to the 4-5-1 tactic again. He is just not adapted to stay up there for long periods of time. And Rooney is no target man. And on the night Fabregas is the most dangerous man on the field. He is the one that still provided the spark for them to win. Tactics. Your rant makes a hell lot of sense, but just we lost to our and Wenger’s tactics. We lost the game in the middle of the park and it proved too costly when our defense concentration had a minor lapse.
To the extent that you think your views are controversial you are right! Controversy is supposed to make people ask: who is that arse talking. Now we know.
Oh may god i’ve only just found this website and now its the 4/3/07 and we (man utd) have just beaten liverpool at home, and yes arsenal fans we are top of the table and cruising unlike the gunners who are struggling to keep good form, we’ll see who finishes with trophies, not trying to be harsh but the red devils always come out on top, arsenal have always been in the shadow of united, thats a fact!!