That really was peak Ole/COVID ball. Defend and counter, keep a lot of men in defense and try to exploit the space in behind whenever the opposition attack.
Simple tactic. But it worked.
Is it a coincidence that it worked though? 🤔
United were big underdogs for this match as given the position of 14th in the table and Arsenal in a 'title race' in second spot, there really was only one team who were going to win it, right?
With several absentees and even an injury to Yoro during the game, Ruben Amorim was playing as good a side as possible and in the end, got an unlikely performance out of them.
Is that a coincidence as well? 👀
It was a game of two halves as the first 45 was very boring.
Bruno then produced a moment as a brilliant free-kick found the back of the net to give United the lead late in the half.
That is now the captain's third free-kick scored this season and is the only player to have scored multiple free-kicks in the league.
Special.
This meant United took a halftime lead for the 306th time since 1984. We hadn't lost a game in that time when being ahead at the break.
Many were worried about this but when looking at United's solid defending and the Gunner's lack of firepower up front, there really wasn't anything to be concerned about.
The only issue for Amorim was Raya in Arsenal's goal.
Despite what looked like poor positioning for Bruno's free-kick, everything else he did was superb as he was unbeatable in the second period despite United's best efforts.
United prduced one of their better moves as Dalot actually played an early cross which found Mazraoui free at the back post but his volley was denied by a top stop by Raya.
Wing-back to wing-back. Proper Amorim ball.
Not long after this chance and it was Zirkzee who saw an opportunity thwarted by the impressive Spaniard in goal. Garnacho plays a cross that gets defelcted before making it's way to Zirkzee who improvised a flick but unfortunately, it found the 'keeper.
Arsenal were pushing and eventually managed to find a goal as Rice popped up with a good finish to get them back in the game.
Poor marking by United's midfielders meant space for Arsenal's number 41 to fire a shot from just inside the box to beat Onana at the far post and make for an interesting final 20 minutes.
Amorim will be very disappointed with this concession because it was the only real wrong step taken by United defensively.
The game opened up a bit more from that equalizer and this worked in our favor as it allowed us more space to take advantage of.
United's best chance to retake the lead came because of this as another well-worked move saw the ball come to the amazing Mazraoui who played a cutback that found the captain. His finish was brilliantly saved by Raya who then had to make an even better stop as after the ball popped up from his original save, the spin on it was taking it in. Raya's reflexes were cat-like and he got the ball away.
United denied a deserved winner with pretty much the last kick of the game.
The match ended 1-1 and wasn't the worst of results nor performances from the home side.
With an onwatching Sir Jim Ratcliffe - who was booed upon entering the stadium - United and Amorim managed to produce one of their better displays at a time that is very challenging for the club.
The protests outside the ground gave a clear message to the owners that the fans have had enough. The United boss said that the players have to use this energy and show it on the pitch and it seemed like they did just that.
Amorim will be pleased at what his players produced but will probably think how did we not get more?
The last two matches have shown us something to be happy with but when we don't take our chances, we don't get what we deserve. At least we make those opportunities now which will be a part of our game that the manager will be content with.
Defensively solid, a good performance in midfield by Casemiro and Bruno, and youngster Heaven showing why we brought him in from Arsenal. United survived today and the halftime record stood.
And protests about wanting the owners out while the owners watched.
Not a bad day at the office.
Ratings
Onana - 6
Lindelof - 6.5
De Ligt - 7
Yoro - 6.5
Mazraoui - 7.5 MOTM
Bruno - 7
Casemiro - 6.5
Dalot - 5.5
Garnacho - 6.5
Eriksen - 5.5
Zirkzee - 6
Heaven - 6.5
Collyer - 6
Hojlund - 5.5
Ruben Amorim - 7
Final Thoughts
Why I ask whether it was a coincidence that this simple approach and the fact that Arsenal were the favorites resulted in United playing better than usual is because we've known for a while that we do prefer to hit teams on the counter and also prefer when the pressure is off us.
That is when this team thrive.
We mention how they are low IQ footballers and to play a more conservative and basic style doesn't require a high IQ. Lots pf players behind the ball, play the ball into space and try to counter them.
Basic.
It worked for us under Solskjaer and has worked in this game as well as several others such as the derby, the match at Anfield and in the other two games against the Gunners.
In these isolated fixtures, it can work but we know it's not sustainable. Against the lesser sides, this will not work and we will have those same frustrations we've been having. People shouldn't be too excited about this performance as we've seen it before.
In saying all of that though, even with this basic approach, we should've won.
We limited Arsenal to pretty much just the goal and we create multiple good opportunities of our own. Mazraoui, Zirkzee and Bruno all were denied by Raya who was watching too much Alisson from the week. The Arsenal shotstopper had a blinder in goal and there's nothing we could've done about it.
I did predict we'll lose so the fact that we got something out of it means I can't really complain yet even still, I am disappointed.
This match was very similar to Thursday's draw against Sociedad where we also gave up a bit of possession to play more in transition and also a game where we wasted quite a few good chances.
Hopefully what the players do is take the positives away despite the disappointment. We'll need momentum going into the return leg in a couple of days as our season depends on it.
#GlazersOut #INEOSOut
Background Image: Man Utd 1-1 Arsenal | Casemiro and Declan Rice | Image via Manchester United official X (@ManUtd)