Man Utd 0-1 Arsenal: Calafiori heads winner despite Cunha & Mbeumo shine

  /  R47

Riccardo Calafiori's header saw Arsenal edge to a 1-0 win against Manchester United in their Premier League opener, despite Ruben Amorim's side looking much-improved going forward.

Match Report

AFTER a summer of feverish activity in the transfer market, it seems nothing has changed very much at all. 

Manchester United still can’t score goals - and they still concede stupid ones.

Arsenal still aren’t much fun to watch but are still good at set-pieces and still pretty effective at grinding out results. 

Mikel Arteta’s perennial runners-up prevailed thanks to a shocking error from Altay Bayindir,  who flapped at a corner, allowing Riccardo Calafiori to nudge an early, decisive, header over the line. 

Yet United were the better team by a country mile, save for those two recurring themes - the scoring and conceding of goals.

If only football matches weren’t decided by such trivialities then Ruben Amorim’s men wouldn’t keep getting beaten so often.  

United’s new boys Bryan Mbeumo and Matheus Cunha were seriously impressive on debut, while Arsenal’s Viktor Gyokoreres and Martin Zubimendi were way off the pace.  

Benjamin Sesko arrived as a second-half sub but he didn’t have a sniff at goal. 

There was very little that was impressive about Arsenal except for simply reading off the names of their substitutes.

Arteta now has a seriously deep squad which will serve him well this season.  

For United, though, the performance was heartening; the result depressingly familiar. 

It was an opening-weekend clash between the Premier League’s nearly men and its nowhere-near men. 

Both clubs had staged significant recruitment drives - Arsenal finally signing a striker, while Amorim was able to stamp something of his own identity on this United squad.

The head-to-head between the Premier League’s two shiniest new centre-forwards was cancelled by virtue of United’s £74million man Sesko starting on the bench. 

Still, all of Old Trafford seemed to have read the memo regarding pre-season optimism. 

The banners were out on the Stretford End and the faithful were belting out their United Road anthem before kick-off, with the Theatre bathed in alien Mancunian sunshine.  

And United were impressively feisty - tackling and running as if they meant it, Mbeumo bullish, Mason Mount playing with the impatience of a man with time to make up.  

Arsenal had looked tardy and scruffy, second to too many balls. 

So, naturally, typically, United conceded a stupid goal. 

Declan Rice swung over a corner, Bayindir - under pressure from William Saliba - flapped feebly and Calafiori headed across the line to narrowly save the Turk from the embarrassment of an own goal.  

“Set piece again, ole, ole,” chirped the travelling Gooners.

Bayindir had previous for this kind of thing - notably at Tottenham in the Carabao Cup last season - and so did Arsenal. 

Still, United continued to look the more purposeful team. Bruno Fernandes was fouled on the edge of the area by Zubimendi, who was looking like a man who had sleepwalked into the fast lane of a motorway. 

Patrick Dorgu pinged a low long-ranger against the post, then Cunha burst through three Arsenal players, bore down on goal but shot straight at David Raya.  

Raya then turned a Cunha cross-shot wide and Arsenal went in at half-time ahead, but without a single one of their outfield players having performed well.

Amad Diallo replaced Diogo Dalot early in the second half - and then Arteta sent for Kai Havertz in place of Gyokeres, who had done very little on his Premier League debut except for barging into a couple of people. 

Noni Madueke also arrived in place of Gabriel Martinelli, whose anonymity had been extreme. 

Sesko arrived on the hour to a huge ovation - as well as a few catcalls from the away end. 

Cunha soon skinned Ben White and fed Mbeumo but the Cameroonian’s run was blocked off before he sent an acrobatic shot wide. 

Arteta hauled off both of his struggling full-backs - sending on Jurrien Timber and Myles Lewis-Skelly. The most impressive thing about Arsenal was the strength of their bench.  

Still, United were bossing it. Dorgu’s cross was met with a downward header from Mbeumo which stretched Raya into an excellent save.  

Lewis-Skelly received a yellow card for chopping down Mbeumo to thwart a United attack. 

Arsenal do the ugly things well. United did some pretty things well. And in that kind of scenario, ugly usually wins. 

Match Events

0' The match is about to start!

0' Rest in peace, Diogo and Andre

0' Thomas Tuchel is spotted watching the game

2' Mbeumo clothes lines Zubimendi and gets away with it

7' Mbeumo's shot wide out

7' Highlight from Man Utd vs Arsenal

9' Dangerous foul from Saliba

13' Classic Corner Tactic! Calafiori headed to break the net! Man Utd 0-1 Arsenal

16' Zubimendi takes down Bruno

24' Cunha feels he should have a penalty after being brought down by Raya

24' Mbeumo has a shot blocked by the defender

26' Poor shot from Martinelli after a promising move by Arsenal

27' Sesko on the bench

29' Match Event for Man Utd vs Arsenal

30' CLOSE! Dorgu hits the post!

31' Martinelli with another miss

33' Cunha goes straight into the box but his shot is saved

35' Odegaard has a shot but Bayındır saves it

39' CLOSE AGAIN! Cunha's shot denied by Raya from a tight angle

42' Yellow Card! Calafiori booked

45' Gyökeres again, but sent wide but wildly overhit cross

51' United hold off Gyökeres in the box and he eventually concedes a free-kick

54' Amad ON; Dalot OFF

60' Rice's shot flies to sky

60' Havertz ON; Gyökeres OFF

64' Šeško is on for his PL debut & Ugarte also comes on; Mount & Casemiro OFF

68' Brilliant work from Cunha, but good defending by Gabriel

70' Mbeumo overhead kick just wide after another lung-bursting run from Cunha

73' Raya full length save to turn away Mbeumo header

77' Dallo's shot is saved!

79' No penalty for Man United!

80' Shaw is taken off, Maguire ON

81' Close! Not enough bend on the free kick from Rice

85' Yellow Card! Patrick Dorgu booked

87' Ugarte wasted the chance with a poor shot

89' Cunha gets down in the box but the referee says no penalty!

93' Yellow Card! Lewis-Skelly booked

94' Highlight from Man Utd vs Arsenal

Line-ups

Man Utd XI: Casemiro, Luke Shaw, Bruno Fernandes, Mount, Altay Bayındır, De Ligt, Dalot, Matheus Cunha, Bryan Mbeumo, Yoro, Patrick Dorgu

Subs: Heaton, Maguire, Ugarte, Zirkzee, Benjamin Sesko, Amad Diallo Traore, Mainoo, Tyler Fredricson, Ayden Heaven

Arsenal XI: David Raya, Ødegaard, Rice, Viktor Gyökeres, Gabriel, Ben White, Martín Zubimendi, Martinelli, Saliba, Saka, Calafiori

Subs: Trossard, Kepa, Merino, Havertz, Madueke, Timber, Cristhian Mosquera, Nwaneri, Lewis-Skelly

Related: Arsenal Manchester United Calafiori
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