A point at the Emirates doesn’t do an awful lot for United’s
increasingly distant hopes of securing a Champions League slot next
season, but the disciplined manner of the performance and a game in
which they matched the title hopefuls may bode well for the longer term.
Indeed, were it not for Szczesny thwarting Robin Van Persie close to
both the beginning and end of the game, United might well have come away
with a hard-earned point.
In a first half in which both sides struggled to produce any
consistent fluency, the best chances came early and easily the best of
them fell to Van Persie. Acting quickly to dispossess a sleeping Arteta,
the Dutchman found himself through with only the keeper to beat, but
uncharacteristically shot directly at Szczesny, who smothered the ball
comfortably. Another opportunity to score against his own side was
wasted when Van Persie shot across goal; between the two chances the
closest Arsenal came to threatening De Gea’s goal was when Giroud
misdirected a free header wide of the keeper’s right post.
Although the first 45 minutes offered pretty dour fare from both
sides, tactically this was a vastly improved effort from the Reds when
compared with other recent games against teams above us in the table.
United showed little of the naivety that brought about defeats to Spurs
and Chelsea; they refused to over-commit, Rooney frequently dropping
deep to provide an extra central midfielder and Carrick and Cleverly
maintaining a high line up the field, allowing them to keep a tight rein
on Arteta and Wilshere and limited Arsenal to very few meaningful
forays into the United box. It wasn’t, needless to say, pretty, but it
showed a work ethic and a character that’s been seriously questioned so
often this season. Representing the spirit most was Vidic, who grew in
stature as the game went on and Arsenal began to seek more earnestly the
points that would take them above Chelsea at the top of the league.
The home side came close to scoring just after the hour mark when
Valencia was called upon to clear Koscielny’s header off the line. This
followed the first period of sustained pressure from Arsenal to bring a
serious test for the back for. As the minutes ticked on, both sides
began to shed the cautious approach that had served them thus far and
showed a clear determination to go for the winner. Both sides introduced
youth and speed from the bench, Januzaj coming on for United and
Oxlade-Chamberlain for Arsenal. Soon afterwards, the home side came lose
when Giroud just failed to get the decisive touch on a wicked Sagna
cross and soon after United came even closer, a brilliant link-up
between Rooney and Van Persie leading to the latter having his header
tipped onto the woodwork by Szczesny.
Soon after, it was De Gea’s turn to imitate the heroics at the other
end when he produced a superb save from Cazorla. In the final seconds of
normal he saved again from the same player, this time holding on to the
ball and bringing to an end the last meaningful attack of the game.
Although Moyes was clearly urging his side forward as the match drew to a
close, and despite the fact that three points was really what United
needed here, their ability to produce the kind of performance that
epitomised an away leg in a European game illustrated the quality that
remains at the heart of this United team.
Sadly, of course, it’s been
dormant for too much of the season, which means that, unless we somehow
go and win the Champions League, we’re unlikely to be deploying such
tactics on the continent next season.
No comments:
Post a Comment