Manchester United – Arsenal: United Show Promise In Defeat (0-1)

An early Riccardo Calafiori goal was the difference here, but Manchester United showed signs of improvement from last season as their new signings and improved understanding of Ruben Amorim’s system saw them play well for large stretches of this game. Ultimately though, Arsenal’s defense held strong to secure the three points.

Tactical analysis and match report by Josh Manley.

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After last season’s disastrous campaign, Ruben Amorim has spent the summer trying to shake things up at Manchester United. High-profile personnel have been exiled, while new faces have been added to the attack with the signings of Matheus Cunha, Bryan Mbuemo, and Benjamin Šeško.

Meanwhile, Arsenal’s summer has once again been about trying to add the final pieces to a side that has been in title conversations for the last few years. Martín Zubimendi has been added to the midfield, while the highest-profile signing was Viktor Gyökeres, with Mikel Arteta trying to add a stronger focal point to his attack.

Amorim’s side lined up in a 3-4-3 shape, with a back three of Leny Yoro, Matthijs de Ligt, and Luke Shaw. Diogo Dalot and Patrick Dorgu were the wing-backs, while Casemiro partnered Bruno Fernandes in midfield. Cunha and Mbuemo were joined by Mason Mount in the frontline.

Mikel Arteta’s side meanwhile started with a 4-3-3 shape. Ben White, William Saliba, Gabriel Magalhães, and Riccardo Calafiori made up the back four, while Zubimendi was the deepest midfielder. Declan Rice and Martin Ødegaard completed the midfield, while the front three comprised Bukayo Saka, Gyökeres, and Gabriel Martinelli.

Lackluster Arsenal lead

It was United who started the game much more brightly, with some promising attacks and intent shown in pressing against the ball. However, just after the ten-minute mark, it was the away side who took the lead, as Calafiori pounced at point-blank range after Altay Bayındır’s weak attempt at dealing with an incoming corner.

When Arsenal had the ball, Calafiori himself often had freedom to move into midfield. Sometimes this was in a deeper role, and sometimes Rice would stay a bit deeper to allow Calafiori to advance ahead of him. Otherwise, Rice and Ødegaard would take up advanced positions in the left and right halfspaces in support of Gyökeres.

White tended to start deeper on the right side to give width in ball circulation, but could also link up with Saka by moving forward on this side. Zubimendi meanwhile played a balancing role in midfield. He could stay in the number six position to provide central connections, or drop between or alongside the center-backs to give stability when Calafiori or White pushed forward.

Arsenal’s possession in a 4-3-3 against United’s starting 5-4-1 defensive shape. United usually sprung into a high-press from here before long. 

United were playing against this starting from a 5-4-1 defensive shape. However, they showed a more aggressive intent in terms of high pressing compared to last season. They generally did not remain with a chain of five at the back for long spells, as they tried to spring into a high press and get their wing-backs engaged high up the pitch.

As was seen last season in many games, Amorim’s press can often transform into a 4-4-2 shape from its initial chain of three or five at the back. In this match, Dorgu could push up from left wing-back, while Mount and Cunha acted as the forwards and Mbuemo played from the right to form the first line of pressing. Shaw could then cover Saka on the left for United to secure the space left by Dorgu jumping forward.

United’s pressing was overall quite effective in this game. In midfield too, the renewed aggression could be seen, as Fernandes and Casemiro were unafraid to get tight to Arsenal’s midfield and limit their space.

A key part of this was the trust placed in the center-backs. Yoro swept up pretty much everything in his zone, and De Ligt dominated his aerial duels against Gyökeres, which was important as Arsenal often sought the Swedish striker as an outlet to try and bypass the United press.

United’s attacking promise

Scoring goals was a big problem for United last season, with key attackers struggling to find form in front of goal and adapt to Amorim’s system. In this game though, there were promising signs, both in terms of the team’s tactical understanding of Amorim’s system, and the individual play of the new signings Cunha and Mbuemo.

Cunha started as the center forward in this game, with Mount in the left halfspace. The Brazilian showed what he is capable of with a powerful run with the ball in the first half in which he pierced through the heart of Arsenal’s defense before being denied by David Raya. Throughout the game, he was a bright spark on the ball for United. Mbuemo meanwhile showed his off-the-ball strengths in this game, getting into many dangerous positions in his role from the right halfspace.

Another problem for United last season was the deep buildup play. Amorim likes his central center-back to push into midfield alongside the deepest midfielder when United’s goalkeeper has the ball, allowing Fernandes to move further forward from midfield.

United building from the back with De Ligt pushing into midfield. This idea was executed better than it often was last season. 

There were some problems in the implementation of this idea last season, but it worked relatively well in this match. Arsenal often pressed in an asymmetric 4-4-2 shape, as Saka often pushed further forward on the right wing and Martinelli was deeper on the left. With De Ligt and Casemiro in the number six space for United, they were often able to use these players for connections to help move the ball out to Yoro on the right side, who had more space to bring the ball out of defense against the deeper positioning of Martinelli.

The selection of Shaw as left center-back is another interesting aspect for United, and glimpses of this were shown in this match. His technical quality going forward adds another dimension to their left-sided play as he can rotate with Dorgu and the left-sided forward to move into dangerous positions.

United’s possession in the second half with Amad and Mbuemo on the right, and Shaw moving wider to supplement the left-sided attacks.

On the right side, United looked more dangerous in the second half when Amad Diallo replaced Dalot as the right wing-back. With Amad and Mbuemo both being potent attacking threats, some of United’s best moments late on came from this side.

Amorim made more changes in the second half, as Manuel Ugarte replaced Casemiro in midfield, and Šeško made his debut up front, replacing Mount as Cunha moved to the left halfspace.

Although United continued to threaten in attack, they were unable to eventually find an equalizer, as Arsenal’s penalty box defending held strong against a late United onslaught after having been kept on their toes all game by United’s promising attacks.

Takeaways