Arsenal vs Manchester United
Arsenal vs Manchester United is always a game to look forward to; and what a great way to start the year!
The Gunners meet the Red Devils at the Emirates on New Years Day and a packed home crowd will be there in hope of seeing their new head coach, Mikel Arteta, get his first big win against an old enemy.
Moreover, the Red Devils are climbing steadily up the Premier League table, now up to fifth, and Arsenal will be keen to follow that path as they languish below halfway.
In fairness, there won’t be too many Arsenal or Manchester United fans queuing up for the Premier League 2019 highlights packages. They just hope the New Year brings more cheer than the last. In recent times, when Sir Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger locked horns, these two great clubs fought it out annually for the league title, but last season they finished in fifth and sixth.
Expectations may be a little more subdued than in the glory days, but this clash is likely to be as fierce as ever. The latest Arsenal vs Manchester United betting odds can hardly separate the two sides, both around 2.60 to win, se we’re set for a cracker in North London.
Talking Points
Mikel is up to the job
Defeat to Chelsea on Sunday, and the manner in which it came, show’s the scale of Arteta’s task at the Emirates, though there were plenty of encouraging signs for the new boss before his side was turned over in the last ten minutes. The Gunners seemed to lack durability and ran out of steam before defensive frailties let Chelsea in.
But for the majority of the game Arsenal were in control and playing some fast and fluent football. David Luiz looked imperious at the back, maybe inspired by opposing his former team-mates, and Arsenal’s explosive start in attack was just what the Emirates faithful had been hoping for on Arteta’s return.
The new boss had talked about re-connecting the fans with the team and playing attacking, exciting football and in the first half the supporters got exactly that. And Mesut Ozil, for so long out on the cold, was back to his best as he linked up play brilliantly just behind frontman Alexandre Lacazette.
Goalkeeper Bernd Leno will be disappointed by his failure to stop Chelsea’s equaliser but he’s been a great asset for the Gunners all season and Arteta will be relying on him to put that behind him.
A year ago Arsenal were fifth in the table and that will be Arteta’s minimum aim. They are currently in 12th, but a win on Wednesday would take the Gunners to within four points of the Red Devils.
Ole searching for consistency
Manchester United seem to be moving steadily in the right direction, but they have struggled to put a run together. Impressive wins over Spurs and Manchester City were followed by a draw with Everton and a nightmare loss away to Watford. Since then Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has guided his team to back-to-back wins again, at home to Newcastle and away to Burnley.
The clean sheet against the Clarets was United’s first in 15 games and that’s a problem for any side aiming for the top four. With the transfer window about to open Solskjaer can strengthen, but so far he’s been looking for a frontman. The Red Devils have been tracking Erling Braut Haaland but he’s off to Dortmund, so they could turn their attention to Lyon’s Moussa Dembele.
I’m not so sure that should be the priority. Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial were on target again in Manchester United’s 0-2 win at Turf Moor and are in great form.
Auba vs Marcus
Goals are the staple diet for SBOBET Premier League writers and we love a battle between two in-form strikers. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Rashford sit second and joint third in the Premier League top scorers list, with 13 and 12 goals respectively, and both will be good bets to score on New Year’s Day.
This is Rashford’s best season so far while Aubameyang has been a top scorer in the Premier League for two years.
History
Manchester United have had the best in the head-to-head meetings between these two sides in the Premier League era, with 31 victories to Arsenal’s 18, and there have been 16 draws
Arsenal won this game 2-0 last season but haven’t won in their last five games, and have gone seven matches without winning at the Emirates.
Betting Tip
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Arsenal vs Manchester United | Arsenal Draw no Bet @ 1.98 |
| January 02, (04:00 (GMT+8) |
This is sure to be a great contest and the odds, with Arsenal at 2.62, Manchester United at 2.58 and the draw at 3.30, show how close it’s likely to be.
Arteta will want his team to build on their attacking performance against Chelsea, while United will be happy to sit back and play on the break. Whichever defence can cope best with the serious threat they both face will be the unsung heroes.
A SHORT EXPLANATION ON HOW OUR ( ) BETS ARE WORTH: |
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 = €20 (Highly confident) |
= €10 (CONFIDENT) |
= €5 (SOMEWHAT CONFIDENT) |
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Disclaimer: Odds are correct at time of publish.
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