Cristiano Ronaldo bagged a brace as Manchester United came back from a goal down to defeat Arsenal 3-2 in a thrilling Premier League clash at Old Trafford.
Arsenal made a bright start to the game and went in front just 13 minutes when Emile Smith Rowe fired home from the edge of the area even as Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea lay on the floor after going down under contact from his teammate. The goal was allowed to stand after a lengthy VAR check as referee Martin Atkinson had not blown his whistle in time before the ball hit the back of the net.
Spurred on, Manchester United started to ask questions of the Arsenal defence and managed to pull back on level terms close to half-time when Bruno Fernandes calmly finished past Aaron Ramsdale after getting on the end of a lovely cutback from Fred. Six minutes into the second period, the hosts grabbed the lead through Cristiano Ronaldo’s side-footed finish after some neat work from Diogo Dalot and Marcus Rashford.
However, Arsenal struck back almost immediately, with Martin Odegaard beating David de Gea after being found inside the box by the lively Gabriel Martinelli. But, the Red Devils were back in front again on the 70th-minute mark, when Fred was fouled by Martin Odegaard inside the Gunners’ box, and Ronaldo dispatched the resulting penalty with ease to make it 3-2.
Bukayo Saka threatened to equalise again late on, but Manchester United held on to their narrow lead and grabbed a crucial victory in caretaker manager Michael Carrick’s last game in charge with Ralf Rangnick set to take over. The win sees the Red Devils move to seventh place in the table, four points shy of the fourth spot, while Mikel Arteta’s men remain fifth. Here are our player ratings for both sets of players.
Manchester United Player Ratings
David de Gea: 6/10
CONTROVERSY AT OLD TRAFFORD!
Emile Smith Rowe scores with David De Gea on the floor injured… AND THE GOAL STANDS!#PLonPrime #MUNARS pic.twitter.com/dEumm7SzhA
— Amazon Prime Video Sport (@primevideosport) December 2, 2021
The Spaniard bizarrely stayed on the ground expecting a whistle and took his eyes off what was going on around him, even as Smith Rowe struck past him to hand Arsenal the lead. De Gea did make amends with a good save to deny Gabriel in the second half and had a couple more half-decent stops.
Diogo Dalot: 7/10
The ex-FC Porto ace made his first Premier League start in over two years owing to an injury to Aaron Wan-Bissaka and made his chance count. Dalot provided a constant outlet on the right flank, getting forward well and was fairly solid defensively as well. He was involved in the buildup to the second goal as he played Rashford in with a lovely pass.
Victor Lindelof: 6.5/10
There were occasions when he looked unconvincing, especially while defending set-pieces. But Lindelof held his own more often than not and stayed solid at the back, showing aerial strength and good distribution.
Harry Maguire: 7/10
The Manchester United captain was thrust right back into the lineup after returning from his suspension, and he put in an assured display. Maguire did not let anything past him on the night and showed a sense of aggression and intensity when stepping out with the ball, especially in the first half when the team needed to kick the pace up a notch after going behind.
Alex Telles: 6/10
The Brazilian had an interesting duel with compatriot Gabriel Martinelli on his flank and had done well to keep the Arsenal starlet quiet. However, he was caught way too infield, allowing Martinelli space to run into and pick Odegaard out for the equaliser in the second half.
Scott McTominay: 6/10
As usual, the Scotsman displayed good energy and intensity in his defensive work, helping shield the back four. However, he needs to offer a bit more quality and cutting edge when he gets on the ball.
Fred: 7/10
Fred was everywhere tonight ? pic.twitter.com/agniMIaMgK
— ESPN UK (@ESPNUK) December 2, 2021
The midfielder made a poor start to the contest, constantly misplacing passes, failing to collect straightforward passes from teammates before stamping on de Gea, leading to the moment when Arsenal scored.
However, he redeemed himself with a fine run before assisting for Fernandes’ goal and continued to make such forward forays regularly, winning the penalty from which Ronaldo made it 3-2. He was guilty of not tracking Odegaard for Arsenal’s second but produced a huge block to stop Bukayo Saka in the latter stages.
Marcus Rashford: 6/10
Starting on the right flank, the Manchester United No. 10 did not always look comfortable and failed to test Nuno Tavares a great deal. However, he did well to find Ronaldo with a good cutback for United’s second goal of the game. He also made a vital clearance early on, with the score still 0-0.
Bruno Fernandes: 7/10
The Portuguese playmaker was making his 100th appearance for Manchester United and marked with a well-taken goal that sparked the comeback win. Most of the positive moves that the Red Devils created went through Fernandes, although it cannot be denied that he is still not playing at his best levels.
Jadon Sancho: 6/10
The Player to Watch in our match preview, Sancho looked full of confidence and ran at the Arsenal defence each time he got on the ball, although he could not make significant inroads. The Englishman did have a hand in United’s first-half equaliser as he made a good run and pass to Fred in the buildup.
Cristiano Ronaldo: 8/10
Cristiano Ronaldo has now scored 12 goals in 16 appearances for Manchester United this season:
◉ 6 in the Premier League
◉ 6 in the Champions LeagueHe was never stopping on 800. ? pic.twitter.com/62uJLmm8jB
— Squawka Football (@Squawka) December 2, 2021
The Portuguese maverick had hardly done anything of note in the first half apart from firing two tame shots when he could have picked teammates in better positions. But Ronaldo, as he so often does, stepped up when it mattered yet again, firing past Ramsdale to make it 2-1 early in the first period before burying a powerful penalty to win it for Manchester United. He scored his 800th and 801st career goals for club and country in the process.
SUBSTITUTES
Jesse Lingard: N/A
Lingard came on for Rashford with less than 15 minutes left. He added a bit of fresh energy.
Anthony Martial: N/A
Late substitute for Ronaldo.
Donny van de Beek: N/A
Late substitute for Fernandes.
Arsenal Player Ratings
Aaron Ramsdale: 6/10
The Arsenal stopper made a few routine stops on either side of half-time, but he could have done nothing about any of the three goals that Manchester United scored on the night. He distributed well from the back, as usual.
Takehiro Tomiyasu: 7/10
The summer signing was solid defensively as he ensured that Jadon Sancho did not have a lot of joy on his flank. It also meant that he could not get forward a great deal, although one of his crosses did lead to a chance. Tomiyasu made a crucial block to deny Fernandes late in the game.
Ben White: 6/10
The England star had an interesting duel with Ronaldo on the night. White managed to somewhat keep the Manchester United superstar at bay in the first half, although there was one moment when he was completely beaten by the Portuguese’s skills. He was guilty of making a poor clearance in the lead-up to United’s equaliser, and his performance levels somewhat dipped after the break.
Ben White failing to stop Ronaldo with a Spinaroonie. pic.twitter.com/IB4E7YnV9n
— Stephen Drennan (@babuyagu) December 2, 2021
Gabriel Magalhaes: 7/10
The Brazilian centre-back was solid and assured at the back, making several crucial interventions. Gabriel also posed a goal threat at the other end and forced De Gea into making a save early in the second period. Not at fault for the three goals his team conceded.
Nuno Tavares: 5.5/10
Preferred over Kieran Tierney yet again, the summer signing did well to keep Rashford quite early on but was unable to make much of an impact going forward. He was tested much more after the half-time break and was caught out for United’s second of the night.
Thomas Partey: 5/10
The Ghanaian endured a poor first half when he constantly gave away the ball under pressure from his opponents, two such turnovers leading to shots at goal for the home team. After the break, he showed slight improvement and had a hand in Odegaard’s goal but is not performing at the level expected of him.
Mohamed Elneny: 6/10
A surprise selection, Elneny got the nod ahead of Albert Sambi Lokonga at Old Trafford. He offered good energy and tenacity in the middle of the park without really influencing proceedings a great deal. He did, however, win the header that led to Smith Rowe’s goal in the first half.
Gabriel Martinelli: 7/10
Arteta on Martinelli's performance: "He created assists, he worked extremely hard, & he had some really good moments – he looked a threat" #Arsenal pic.twitter.com/GUbec2kOge
— Gurjit (@GurjitAFC) December 3, 2021
The Brazilian starlet got the nod on the right-wing owing to an injury to Bukayo Saka, and he looked up for the challenge. Martinelli constantly tried to put Telles under pressure on his side and then set Odegaard up for the second goal with a perfectly weighted pass.
Martin Odegaard: 5.5/10
The former Real Madrid midfielder often took up good positions and looked to make things happen in the final third. He took his goal well to drag Arsenal back into the contest but then gave away the penalty with a silly challenge that cost his team a win, which eats into his rating.
Emile Smith Rowe: 6/10
The academy product put Arsenal in front with a well-struck volley, albeit he was fortunate that De Gea was prone on the floor. Smith Rowe did little of note in the attacking sense from that point on, although he was not shy of putting in the hard yards off the ball.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang: 4/10
Apart from drawing a save from De Gea in the second half, the Arsenal skipper did very little of note on the night. Aubameyang wasn’t involved in the contest all that much, and when he did get on the ball, he was unable to use it in an effective manner.
Aubameyang is the new Ozil. Long term contract has just changed him. Such a nosedive in form.
— DaveOCKOP (@DaveOCKOP) December 2, 2021
SUBSTITUTES
Bukayo Saka: 6/10
The youngster came on for Smith Rowe in the 70th minute and was a lively presence, causing United some problems.
Alexandre Lacazette: N/A
Sent on for Aubameyang in the 79th minute.
Eddie Nketiah: N/A
On for Odegaard in the 79th minute.
