Sports
Arsenal Beat Manchester United To Make Premier League Title Statement
Arsenal made a huge statement of their Premier League intent on Sunday, coming from behind to beat in-form Manchester United 3-2 in front of a raucous Emirates crowd.
In the 90th minute, Nketiah turned the ball in to give the Gunners a goal they deserved after pouring forward in pursuit of a victory.
Manchester City, the defending champions, had earlier cut the deficit to to two points with their 3-0 victory over Wolves, thanks to Erling Haaland’s fourth hat-trick of the year.
With loan signing Wout Weghorst once more leading the line, Scott McTominay took the place of Brazilian midfielder Casemiro, who was ineligible after receiving his fifth booking of the year in United’s midweek draw with Crystal Palace.
Leandro Trossard, a late-week addition to Arsenal from Brighton, was forced to make do with a spot on the bench as Mikel Arteta picked an unchanged lineup.
At the Emirates, there is a growing air of optimism that the Gunners can finally end their lengthy title drought—which dates back to 2004—and win the Premier League.
Thomas Partey missed a chance to score as Arsenal sprinted forward after the opening whistle.
However, it was United who struck first in the 17th minute when Bruno Fernandes teed up Rashford, who easily raced past Partey and sent a low shot from 25 yards into the bottom corner of the net.
Seven minutes later, Granit Xhaka’s cross was nodded in by the in-form Nketiah, who had mistakenly lost Aaron Wan-Bissaka at the back post.
But a pulsating game took another twist when United drew level just six minutes later.
Ramsdale spilled the ball from a United corner and Lisandro Martinez threw himself at it, looping a header into the net.
Arsenal regrouped and Saka hit the post in a near repeat of his goal as De Gea watched nervously.
De Gea made a fine save when Nketiah blasted at him from close range as the clock ticked down, with United unable to control the ball for sustained spells.
Nketiah’s second goal of the game gave Arsenal all three points after a thorough VAR review determined that he was onside, saving United from holding out for a draw.
Read More: Premier League: Erling Haaland Scores Hat-trick As Manchester City Outplay Wolves
