Match Preview: Arsenal v. Manchester United; Expecting a Reaction

Wenger is pissed. There is no joke here, no #WengerOutBrigade, no fluff about how this-is-unacceptable-we-have-to-be-better — nope, this is good, ole fashioned, angry Arsene. After the mid-week flop against Olympiakos, partly thanks to David Ospina’s howler, Wenger made it very clear yesterday that he is done explaining his decisions, his motives, his so-called “lack of pressure,” Champions League, and, most importantly, Jose Mourinho.

Wenger is pissed. It’s October 3rd, a full month after the Transfer Window closed, and, would you believe it, journalists aren’t asking Wenger about his tactics, or Tomas Rosicky, or their mixed bag of a Premier League start, but, instead insist on asking him about not buying Anthony Martial. If you were to listen to the media and the journalists out there, you’d know a few things about Arsenal:

A. They have a striker crisis.
B. They are sunk.

Nevermind that Theo Walcott has now scored in 12 of his last 13 starts for Arsenal and, despite all their other shortcomings, have the chance to tie Manchester United for first place tomorrow at the Emirates. Last year in this fixture, an own goal by Kieran Gibbs helped sink Arsenal, but, of course, Danny Welbeck got the last laugh against his former team in the FA Cup Quarterfinals back in March.

Wenger is pissed — perhaps more so than I’ve ever seen him before. He is irritated, he is grumpy, he is tired of having to explain himself for things that did or did not happen, however much those results were out of his hand and influence. He is pissed that own goals are his fault; he’s pissed that it’s his fault that United were willing to pay an embarrassment of riches for a nineteen year-old; and he’s pissed that he’s being blaming for the Olympiakos loss and Ospina when the other ten men did as much defending as Wenger himself.

So, this isn’t a Wenger In or Wenger Out debate, it’s just normal Wenger at this point — the same stubborn, old French wildcard that we’ve come to love and cherish, for better or for worse. Sure, maybe he is doubling down on Ospina by beating-the-Cech-was-hurt dead horse, but surely this Arsenal team didn’t need Cech to avoid giving up three goals to Olympiakos at home, right?

Ultimately, we’ll never truly know what prompted Ospina to drop the ball in his own net, or how Flamini scored an absolute belter against Spurs at the Lane, or why Oxlade-Chamberlain refuses to play defense, or even when the media will stop asking about Marital. Just as we did after the Chelsea fiasco a few weeks back, we’ll move on — I suggest we all do that now.

Move on and forget about those mid-week highs and woes, forget about Olympiakos, and don’t dread Bayern just yet. In just a few hours, we’ll get to watch one of the best match-ups in the sport’s history go toe-to-toe with a whole bunch on the line. And at the end of this very long-winded spiel is a truth that has helped me get through Arsenal struggles like this before — for every painful, embarrassing loss, there’s an equally awe-inspiring victory.

For every David Ospina howler against Olympiakos, there is a Danny Welbeck game-winner at Old Trafford.

Wenger is pissed — because this week, his miscalculation and Arsenal’s un-execution have dragged on far past its expiration date. Wenger is pissed because all this noise, all these excuses, and all these questions about pressure will once again silence themselves when Arsenal defeats an old foe this weekend.

It’s just taking forever to get here.

Preview:

With that, here’s my very honest attempt at rationally breaking down one of Arsenal’s most important fixtures of the year. As is anytime Koscielny misses a game, I get those nervy anxieties that are are usually saved for protecting a one-goal lead away against Crystal Palace. And as much as the demise of Per Mertesacker has been greatly exaggerated, the thought of him trying to chase Martial and Depay is ninety-minutes-worth-of-clenching bad.

Thankfully, Gabriel, fresh off of his one-game ban for his actions following the red card against Chelsea, will slot smoothly into that role. Gabriel has wonderfully grown into a worthy defender in the Premier League, but, most importantly, will keep the bad luck magnet of Calum Chambers off the pitch entirely.

In the midfield, the battle over Aaron Ramsey on the flank will likely continue to the chagrin of most fans. These people will argue that Santi Cazorla should be dropped in favor of Ramsey in the middle and Oxlade-Chamberlain on the right. However, Ox doesn’t work as hard as Ramsey does defensively, and Theo on the wing would mean Giroud up top with no change of pace off the bench. The key here, as it has been for almost an entire year, is Coquelin. If he can put in a full-shift here, I really do like Arsenal’s chances.

I expect to see some urgency from a squad that knows London will literally be red with flames if they lose this one. This Arsenal fan base will get unruly and rude just as they did on that cold night following the Stoke loss — 0 points in Champions League and 6 points off the leaders would be a recipe for some serious disaster.

Arsenal needs to not get flustered by United’s tireless obsession over possession as Rooney, Martial, Mata, and Depay all have the ability to burn them. It’s far more likely that we’ll see the Arsenal from last week’s match against Leicester than a repeat of the Olympiakos debacle and that is somehow incredibly refreshing.

Players To Watch:
Arsenal: Coquelin, Gabriel
For Coquelin, we’ll need to see if he’s truly over the injury that forced him out against Chelsea. This goes without saying, but Arsenal just aren’t the same side without Coquelin in it — and, oh, boy, he is going to murder somebody while celebrating a goal he scored someday, how’s tomorrow sound? Hey, you can’t even call me crazy because of Flamini’s statue-worthy performance last week.

And, finally, Gabriel — it’s imperative that he respond well in the league after the Costa scrumbucket — and, ultimately, will likely have to cover for Mertesacker on many occasions. Will we see the steadily confident and skilled Gabriel we saw over the first part of the season?

United: Mata, Martial
The wunderkid has three goals already for United and he’ll dying to score against the club that said he was overpriced. Although the goals were largely simple finishes, one can not underestimate his timing and nuanced runs. Paired with Juan Mata, the duo has the potential to tear apart Arsenal in the stadium we once considered a fortress.

Probable Lineups:

Click to Enlarge

Injuries & Suspensions:
Arsenal: Arteta (thigh), Flamini (hamstring), Koscielny (hamstring), Wilshere (Dec), Welbeck (Feb), Rosicky (knee)

Manchester United: Rojo (hamstring), Shaw (broken leg) Herrera (doubtful – match fitness), McNair (doubtful – match fitness)

Match Officials:
Referee: Anthony Taylor (7M 28Y 1R)
Assistant Referee: J Brooks, L Betts
Fourth Official: R East

Broadcast Infortmation:
UK: Sky Sports 1; 16.00 GMT
US: NBC Sports Network; 11:00 AM EST

Prediction:
Arsenal 2-2 Manchester United

Match Facts (Courtesy FourFourTwo.com via Opta Sports)

• Arsenal have won just one of their last 13 Premier League fixtures against Manchester United (D4 L8).
• Manchester United are unbeaten in four away games against Arsenal – they’ve never gone five without a loss away to the Gunners in the Premier League era.
• Arsenal have a lower win percentage against Manchester United in the Premier League (24%) than versus any other opponent in the competition.
• Wayne Rooney has netted 11 times in 25 Premier League games against Arsenal. The only sides he’s scored more goals against in the competition are Newcastle (12) and Aston Villa (13).
• Rooney scored his first ever Premier League goal (Oct 2002), his first Premier League goal for Man Utd (Oct 2004) and his 100th Premier League goal (Jan 2010) against the Gunners.
• Arsenal have the two players to have created the most goalscoring chances in the Premier League so far this season; Mesut Ozil (29) and Santi Cazorla (28).
• Since making his PL debut back in August 2012, Santi Cazorla has provided more Premier League assists than any other player (32).
• Theo Walcott has netted 12 goals in his last 13 Premier League starts for the Gunners.
• Louis van Gaal has lost just one of his five meetings with Arsene Wenger (all comps), losing in the FA Cup last season after winning one and drawing one in the PL and winning one and drawing one in the 1999/00 Champions League group stages with Barcelona.
• Anthony Martial has been directly involved in four goals in his first three Premier League games, netting three and assisting one.