Sign da ting 📝!
I don't mean to get too ahead of myself but,
WE'RE WINNING THE LEAGUE!!!!!
Carrick has come in and changed our lives 😭😭. Two games, two wins, beating both FRAUDiola and FARTeta, we used to pray for days like these 🙌.
Alright everybody calm down.
Calm?
Okay, let's get into it.
That was all sarcasm btw. I do be like that sometimes 😅.
I did strongly believe that United weren't going to lose today. My gut said that we will at least get a draw but at no point did I truly think we'd walk away with all 3 points.
Happy to be proven wrong 👍.
It was no surprise that Carrick picked the same team and went with the same approach. The thing that was actually frustrating me was the fact that we sat deep and didn't do anything else. Until their opener, United just defended but allowed Arsenal to have all of the ball.
Compared to City, we managed to create a lot of chances while also being defensively orgainzed.
The trouble that with how we approached it against Arsenal is that at some point, you will be asking for trouble and half-an-hour in, trouble.
An own goal by Martinez gave the hosts the lead and you just feel so flat. We've done nothing all game and now we go a goal behind in that manner. Admittedly, I was feeling a bit down beat because how do we come back into this? United aren't really a side who manage to claw their way back when playing away from home against the better sides.
Somehow though, going behind actually helped us as we kicked into gear.
This is something that I liked throughout the match as every time we had a setback, the team reacted positively. United had a couple of decent chances with captain Bruno with the pick of them not long after the own goal.
Not long after that, and it was 1-1 thanks to the man who has revolutionized our attack.
Some poor play by Arsenal at the back saw Martin Zubimendi play the perfect assist for Mbeumo to be one-on-one with ex-Brentford teammates David Raya.
In these positions, you know what happens.
Our Cameroonian dummied the goalkeeper, brought it onto his right and passed it into an empty net. That is now his 8th goal of the season and another against a big 6 side after Liverpool, Spurs and City last week.
Big player. Big game player as well.
Taking it into the break at 1-1 was not the worst result.
In the second half we came out the complete opposite to the first as United had a lot of possession. Arsenal were happy to let us have it and try to break them down while they look to counter us.
However, Dorgu had other ideas.
The left-back-turned-left-winger-turned-Gareth Bale said 'fuck it' and fired an absolute cracker from 25-yards out into the roof of the goal. It hit the underside of the bar before going over the line, which made the strike even better.
Just 5 minutes into the second period and we were in the lead. Quite the turnaround indeed.
A familiar pattern of play followed and one that wasn't entirely unexpected.
Mikel Arteta made four substitutions at once in the hopes of changing the game. One of these subs was to remove his captain. Don't know which manager would remove his skipper and one of his most important players in such a situation, but hey, Odegaard is better than Bruno, right?
These changes actually did little and less as Arsenal struggled to truly penetrate a stubborn United defense.
However, as is expected nowadays, a corner gives the Gunners a way back as after poor defending from United, substitute Mikel Merino made it 2-2 from point-blank range.
This is where you would've thought that the home team will go on to get the win 👀.
But if Arteta made a great change with Merino, then Carrick's substitute was inspired.
For the second week in a row, Cunha comes off the bench and delivers another superb cameo.
He did exactly what was needed of him in terms of keeping a bit of possession, winning cheap fouls, frustrating Arsenal and oh, scoring a beauty of a goal.
Dorgu's was a rocket and this was a purler.
The Brazilian used a defender as a shield to curl the ball around him and beyond Raya. Similarly to Dorgu, Cunha's goal was from outside the box which is what made a strike like this all the more impressive becuase the power needed was more than usual.
Defintely a goal worthy to win any game.
Despite 7 minutes of injury time, Arsenal did next to nothing to suggest that they were going to get back into it one way or another as United comfortably held on for a deserved victory.
Carrick with another 3 points and more than anything, bringing some good vibes back to the club. Whether it will last remains to be seen but you have to give him some credit for what he's done in these two matches.
Victory here coupled with Liverpool's defeat (🤣) moves United into the top 4 for the first time since the dinosaurs, or so it feels. It's where we want to be but the true test for Carrick and the players, is to remain there.
The United interim has also now beaten Arteta twice (both 3-2), Pep Guardiola, Unai Emery and picked up a draw against Thomas Tuchel.
Not a bad group of managers tbh.
Ratings
Lammens - 7
Dalot - 6.5
Maguire - 7
Martinez - 6.5
Shaw - 6.5
Casemiro - 7
Mainoo - 6
Amad - 6.5
Bruno - 6.5
Dorgu - 8.5 MOTM
Mbeumo - 8
Cunha - 8
Sesko - 6
Mazraoui - 6
Michael Carrick - 7
Final Thoughts
WOW! Mind fucking blown 🤯.
I had a feeling that we'll do a job but certainly not a job like this!
This is what football is about though. These big games and winning them is why we watch the sport.
My five-month old nephew was sleeping during the match but I couldn't care less when both Dorgu's and Cunha's goals went in. I think we all screamed in excitement and astonishment in those moments. Thankfully, he didn't wake up 😅. He'll understand when he's older.
It wasn't the most amazing game of football but you don't care how you win matches like these just that you do. But to do it in the manner that we did by scoring two goals like that and beating those fools in their own backyard, made it even better.
Btw, that was Arsenal's first home loss this season, their first at home since May last year and our first win at The Emirates since 17/18.
And they were talking about this Arsenal side being able to compete with '08 United 😪.
It is only two games and we've seen this United team turn up in these big fixtures before. We are at the top of the big 6 table but you look at us drawing to Burnley, Wolves, West Ham, Bournemouth and Losing to 10-man Everton at home, and it really tells you a lot about this United team.
Next week we face Fulham at Old Trafford. That is arguably more of a test than City and/or Arsenal based on what I said above. This counter-attacking approach also won't cut the mustard against the lesser teams who sit back themselves and all the initiative is on us.
We'll need to do something different.
With all that being said, we also can enjoy this victory, just like last week. We know that we've literally been here before with Solskjaer and that that didn't really go the way we wanted which is why a lot of people have remained more reserved after two such wins.
We also don't want to get too ahead of ourselves only to be disappointed in the near future.
As Carrick himself said on Friday, we need to stay grounded, and he's right.
Wins like these need to be celebrated especially because we don't have them too often. But we can also point out that there is a lot of work to be done in order to get to where we want to be.
Both can be true.
But I gotta be honest with you, I fucking hate Arsenal. I hate them more than City and Liverpool truth be told. Nobody cares about City and I actually respect LFC given all they've achieved in football.
Arsenal do have enough people who care (and care too much as per that comparison of their current team versus one of our greatest) and that they are the most deluded fan base whereby they win one PL title in 20 years and they'll never shut up about it. That's why beating them was greater than the Derby last week, in my opinion.
And this really was the perfect weekend as well: United win by making ARSEnal lose, we move into fourth and Liverpool lost.
Can ask for no more than that.
And always remember, #GlazersOut, #INEOSOut. That should ALWAYS be the message regardless of performance and results.
Matheus Cunha scores in Man Utd's 3-2 win over Arsenal | Image via Manchester United official X (@ManUtd)