A 2-0 defeat by Tottenham Hotspur leaves Arsenal six points adrift of fourth-placed Manchester City, although they have played one game fewer than all of the sides above them in the standings. That loss at White Hart Lane last time out was typical of Arsene Wenger’s side’s performances against the big six away from home this term, with Arsenal outfought and outthought by a significantly better coached team. Wenger deserves credit for having led the Gunners into the Champions League on a consistent basis in the last two decades, but the top four is surely now beyond them this time around.
Manchester United, meanwhile, are a point adrift of the top four after their 1-1 draw with Swansea City last weekend. It was another disappointing afternoon at Old Trafford for the Red Devils, who have been held to more stalemates (14) than any other side in the division this season; while profligate finishing has been to blame for many of their previous ties at home, Swansea were good value for their draw last time out. United will be content to cede possession and play on the break at the Emirates Stadium, which could prove more successful in terms of creating clear-cut scoring opportunities.
Arsenal will have to make do without Shkodran Mustafi (thigh) and long-term absentee Santi Cazorla (leg) for the visit of United. Wenger has deployed a 3-4-2-1 formation in his side’s last few outings and will probably stick with the same setup here, although the fact that Spurs were so comfortable for much of last weekend’s north London derby could see Wenger revert back to a 4-2-3-1 configuration. Danny Welbeck may replace Olivier Giroud up top, but Arsenal will probably otherwise remain unchanged.
United will be unable to call upon the services of Zlatan Ibrahimovic (knee), Marcos Rojo (knee), Phil Jones (toe), Marouane Fellaini (suspension), Chris Smalling (knee), Luke Shaw (ankle), Tim Fosu-Mensah (shoulder) and Eric Bailly (ankle). Jose Mourinho therefore has a defensive headache going into this one, with Antonio Valencia, Matteo Darmian, Daley Blind and Ashley Young the favourites to form a very makeshift back four on Sunday afternoon. In more positive news, Juan Mata, Paul Pogba and Henrikh Mkhitaryan are all available for selection against the Gunners.
Taking everything into account, it could be worth backing United to come out on top this weekend. Mourinho has an excellent record against Wenger, and despite his team’s injury troubles and the fact that they will have played against Celta Vigo less than 72 hours previously, a reactive and counter-attacking approach could bear fruit against a team who have regularly been found wanting in the big games in the last few years. An away victory looks like the way to go here, then, while Marcus Rashford would be a good choice to find the back of the net anytime.
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