The Live Experience, Arsenal vs Manchester United
"I can’t put it into words. We know how big this game is, the history between the two clubs, and also looking at the table, how big it would be if we won this."
The trip was booked on January 10th, just 12 days before the biggest matchup in the Premier League so far into this season. Prior to this point, Arsenal have lost just 1 game, a 3-1 defeat to a Manchester United team that entered the season under a new regime and with rebuilding goals.
I’ve been fortunate enough to visit quite a few stadiums across Europe, including Stamford Bridge the day prior to the match, but this was my first match in the Emirates and my first live Premier League match with Talisman lenses on.
The match kicks at 4:30pm London time but I want to enter as early as I can to watch both teams warm up. I was surprised to notice that neither first team manager is on the pitch during warm up, instead the warm ups are led by assistant coaches Mitchell van der Gaag for Manchester United and Albert Stuivenberg on the Arsenal side. Fun fact, the last time I saw Albert Stuivenberg he was the assistant coach of Manchester United under Louis Van Gaal.
Goalkeepers begin their warm ups about 1 hour before kick-off and shortly after, the first team comes out to the pitch to warm up for a mere 30 or so minutes before kick off. The warm ups and the drills are exactly what you’d expect, the players form groups and pass the ball to one another. New signing Wout Weghorst shows off some his ball control ability while Saka can be seen dribbling and getting comfortable with the ball at his feet. There is agility and mobility exercises as well and the warm up is finished off with a keep-away game involving just the starters.
By the time the players finish their warm ups and return to the changing room the stadium is rocking. I had fantastic seats, one section away from the Man United away supporters, who really felt like a 12th man red army.
Defensive Issues
Two fantastic goals were scored just in the first half. Marcus Rashford, who we know has been on the form of his life kicked us off. Prior to this point it was Arsenal that dominated the half. Specifically, Gabriel Martinelli dominating Aaron Wan-Bissaka. I had the perfect view on what appeared to be the simplest of plays.
Antony, who was undoubtedly the villain for Arsenal supporters, booed and jeered every time he picked up the ball, found himself in a very difficult situation defensively. Oleksandr Zinchenko, who put in a top class performance, was the left-back on paper but spent the majority of the match tucked in as an auxiliary CDM while Granit Xhaka would often move out-wide to the left-back position. This play caused confusion for United’s right-wing as it was unclear who exactly Wan-Bissaka was supposed to be covering leaving far too much of space for Martinelli to run at him, and that he did.
Marcus Rashford
Its very difficult to explain just how quickly the goal happened. Marcus Rashford, arguably the most dangerous player on the pitch was disappointingly isolated most of the match. He rarely received the ball but when he did he was causing all sorts of havoc, including opening the scoring with an elite goal. With integral United starters missing, Diogo Dalot and Casemiro, United would struggle to build out from the back and the best strategy to winning this match was reflected in the Rashford goal; win the ball back in the opposition’s half quickly and attack with pace and vigor.
Bukayo Saka
If Rashford was not the most dangerous player on the pitch then it was most definitely Bukayo Saka. We’ve discussed the responsibilities of the fullback position in this program before and Saka put fullback Luke Shaw to work all evening. Saka, who scored Arsenal’s 2nd goal to bring the score to 2-1 was having so much fun. He celebrated his sensational goal in the same spot as Rashford with Rashford’s pointing to the temple goal-celebration. My opinion was that Luke Shaw had a good match and did the best he could but the issue was that he was left to defend Saka 1v1 far too often. Christian Eriksen did not do enough this match, neither offensively nor defensively to support Shaw when Saka would cut inside to find space.
Bruno Fernandes
The United skipper had a brilliant first half but was unable to recreate that display in the second half. Once Antony was subbed off in the 71st minute, Fernandes was moved to Right-Wing where similarly to Rashford, he was isolated and struggled to receive the ball. Offensively, Bruno Fernandes runs Manchester United. Everything dangerous goes through Fernandes in one way or another. He’s an incredibly underrated team-player as well, on multiple occasions tracking back to cover for his teammates. Fernandes could also be seen pushing his teammates to show more urgency, notably in defending Arsenal’s short corners which caused a ton of trouble, including Arsenal’s first goal to make it 1-1. Fernandes is always dialed in.
Eddie Nketiah
Cult hero for the Arsenal supporters who chanted his name throughout the match. I struggled to decide if it was Nketiah or Saka who deserved man of the match, I’d barely edge it to Nketiah. The backup forward put in 120% this match, a tireless runner who was brutal on the press and one of the biggest reasons United struggled so much to play out of the back. He never once let Martinez or Varane breath, chasing them for the ball every time they tried to gather possession. I have a soft spot for youth players that work their way into cult heroes and it seemed like he really enjoyed his night, 2 goals against Manchester United will go down as a great memory for Eddie Nketiah.
Quick Fire Takes
Scott McTominay - Massive player defensively, especially when it came to flying in out of nowhere to clear crosses but he offered nothing to United when in possession. Casemiro’s shoes are impossible to fill so of course that’s not the expectation from McTominay but with heavy links to Newcastle, the Scott may only have 6 months left in his United career to either show development on the offensive side or transition to this defensive minded role at St James' Park new season.
Takehiro Tomiyasu - Subbed on to start the second half, he did a much better job than Ben White to defend Marcus Rashford. This substitution stood out as a top move by Mikel Arteta as he clearly identified that by limiting the threat of Rashford, Arteta’s team could push further on to attack.
Wout Weghorst - Even before this match I really liked Weghorst but I was surprised to see just how much of an impact he could have on a team. Because he’s so big and played for Burnley he gives you the impression that he may not be so good on the ball but the Dutch DNA is there his touch is exceptional. A very clever loan signing by Manchester United.
Martin Ødegaard - Elite player but what I thought was special from him this match was his leadership quality. He’s a driving presence for his team and when Leandro Trossard was subbed on during an injury stoppage Ødegaard could be seen waving and hyping the home fans when the substitution was announcement was made on the speaker so as to welcome Trossard to his new home.
Antony - Playing the role of the villain, he’s an extremely fun player to watch on the ball. Its important to remember that this is still his first season adjusting to a new country, a much more intense and difficult league and a new club with a extreme spotlight and pressure. There’s more to come from the Brazilian as he needs to be much more cutthroat with his take-ons but he’s such a joy to watch dribble, I really like his game.
Anthony Taylor - The first referee shout out on this program. I thought he did an unbelievably great job at reffing this match. He was never swayed or influenced by the atmosphere and noise levels and his performance could be described as totally anonymous, which is exactly want you from a referee.
English football is very intense and has a strong cult following, something many American sports fans are starving for. Tickets to matches are extremely difficult to come by which truthfully could be the reason why the fans have so much spirit and character in their support and in turn why those of us that see it abroad are so drawn and attracted to it. In America, for a massive fixture like this (regardless of the sport) I would anecdotally say the majority of the season ticket holders would resell their tickets at higher prices to offset their original costs. Thus creating a ‘whoever can pay the most gets in’ atmosphere.
At the Emirates, one supporter mentioned that the atmosphere at this game was better than he’d even seen during the Invincible era. With different fans and new faces at each game, this obviously destroys any ability to build a true support and backing-feeling at stadiums.
Overall top experience and for anyone interested in attending a Premier League match, go for it!