United take Arsenal back to school

Fresh doubts will have been raised about Arsenal’s ability to turn promise into silverware, but Sir Alex Ferguson’s and Manchester United’s title ambitions were merely reaffirmed.

The title was never going to be won or lost today, but a win for either side would have given them the confidence that they can go on to win the Premier League.

Pre-match team news suggested the game would be a closely contested affair; however, what actually happened on the pitch was a completely different story. Arsene Wenger would have been pleased with the absence of both Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic, but a lightweight Arsenal attack failed to exploit any flaws in an imperious United display.

United were at their best today and gave a perfect lesson on how to play counter-attacking football, led by an in-form Wayne Rooney who capped a tremendous performance by scoring his 100th Premier League goal for the reigning champions.

Rooney though was not alone in producing a match-winning performance. United fans will also have noted a marked improvement from Nani in recent weeks, all of which came to fruition today. From the start of play he tormented Gael Clichy, who was restricted to playing in his own half as on a rare occasion Nani’s tricks and flicks were turned into chances and goals. Indeed, this is how the first goal occurred.

It was Nani’s audacity to beat two players by the corner flag before beating Vermaelen in the box, and crossing for Almunia to turn into his own net that the deadlock was broken on 32 minutes.

If anyone wants to see an example of how to beat your man this is it.

Arsenal had threatened early on in the form of Andrey Arshavin, who was wasteful in front of goal. The Russian’s lost cause wasn’t helped by a lack of support up front. Arsenal have by no means struggled for goals this season. But when facing both Manchester United and Chelsea, the need for an out-and-out striker has been painfully exposed. The loss of Van Persie has been dealt with well due to goals scored by Fabregas, but the lack of fire power in the final third was all too clear to see.

A key component in Arsenal’s ability to score goals and compete among the top echelons of the league is the playing relationship of Fabregas and Van Persie, one that is not as effective with the Arsenal captain and Arshavin.

The away side were able to kill the game only four minutes later. Arsenal were pressing with a corner, only for United to demonstrate again how to counter-attack.

Rooney collected the ball just outside his own box, released to Nani who carried the ball into the Arsenal half, as Rooney roared into the box and dispatched Nani’s return pass beyond a helpless Manuel Alumina. A goal highly reminiscent of United’s third goal at the Emirates to secure a place in last season's Champions League Final.

Unfortunately for Arsene Wenger, so was Arsenal’s performance.

At halftime Sky Sports’ football anoraks scrambled to find out the last time Manchester United led 2-0 and lost. There wasn’t one to be found, a record that remained intact at full time.

Nani had one of his best games in a United shirt; not only did he expose an out-of-sorts Gael Clichy, but he also carried out his defensive duties.

United’s third and final goal on 51 minutes killed the game for Arsenal, despite a late consolation goal by Vermaelen. Ji Sung Park, a player Ferguson regularly employs in midfield for United’s toughest opponents, opened his account for the season, with another beautifully-worked goal by Manchester United.

Michael Carrick created the goal with a perfectly weighted pass over the Gunners' back line which set Park through one-on-one with Almunia: 0-3. Carrick himself gave his best performance of the season. Throughout he collected the ball from defence and looked to be his old self once more.

Arsenal are often touted as the team who produce the best football, but their opponents were undoubtedly a cut above today, something that will not have been ignored by Chelsea, who now retain a lead of one point at the top of the table.

Many lessons can be learnt today, but one that won’t be new is that you can never write off Sir Alex Ferguson and his Manchester United side.

De Jong the Protector

An intriguing game at Eastlands resulting in a 2-1 lead for Manchester City leaves next week's match at Old Trafford finely balanced and one to relish.

Neither team will want to miss out on a place in the Carling Cup Final at Wembley and just as importantly, city bragging rights.

Carlos Tevez scored the vital goals (and what a penalty), Shay Given kept goal impeccably but Nigel De Jong must take credit for his protection of the back four, perhaps leaving Patrick Vieira wandering if first team football is a certainty.

United certainly started the stronger team and looked more assured on the ball and were rarely pressed. Ryan Giggs scored his first derby goal in 14 years to give United a lead after 16 minutes. It was not until a controversial penalty given by Mike Dean for a shirt pull on Craig Bellamy, which was converted by Tevez, that City came to life.

Poor defending from United gifted Tevez a second goal and Man City a lead going into the return leg at Old Trafford next week. The most worrying part of this for Sir Alex Ferguson is that United’s vulnerability in defence is a common sight this season.

United did however press for an equaliser. De Jong covered almost as much ground as Tevez and countless times closed down a determined Wayne Rooney, and along with Gareth Barry and Zabaleta kept United’s midfield in check.

Ferguson then turned to Michael Owen to try and find a vital goal. No such luck. A neat one-two with Rooney put the latter through on goal, but Given was there again, the Irishmen showing exactly why he is City’s number 1, giving a flawless performance.

This will give Mancini confidence. The task when arriving at Eastlands was to sure up the defence. Given is certainly a key foundation in this. The pairing of Lescott and Toure is yet to fulfil its potential, but the Eastlands manager can certainly have faith in De Jong protecting the defence.

De Jong does not provide creativity, but does possess the quality of reading the game well, good positional sense and has a strong work rate to complement it. Perhaps the arrival of Vieira has given him extra motivation to perform; no such luck with Robinho!

Statistics can be a useful measure of the quality of a player and in measuring a performance. De Jong can boast a ‘successful tackle’ rate of four out of four for tonight’s match, whilst also completing 27/37 passes. Good reading to match the performance.

The Dutchman arrived at Eastlands with a glowing reputation from Hamburg. Last season he was solid but not outstanding. If the feisty midfielder can continue this level of performance matched with the commitment shown he will keep his place in Mancini’s side and can secure a place in the Netherlands squad for the World Cup.

The contribution of Tevez and Given cannot be ignored. Two goals against his former club will send the City home very happy, but with the second leg only a week away, Mancini will be relying on the spine of his team to repeat the heroics of tonight to book a place in the final at Wembley.

A Tall Order

Scoring the winning penalty and lifting the F.A Cup as Arsenal Captain in 2005 appeared to be Patrick Vieira’s last act in English football. Since the departure of the commanding Frenchman Arsenal have failed to win a single trophy and have failed to replace the presence that Vieira left, both on and off the field.

Now though as one of Europe’s most decorated players returns to the Premier League with Manchester City, he may be about to witness the rise of a new Gunners hero, Abou Diaby.

Since Arsene Wenger’s creation of the unbeatable team in 2004, Arsenal have only gone on to win one trophy and have seen the squad dismantled and rebuilt, on promises of young players producing the beautiful football seen at Highbury and the Emirates Stadium, as well as more trophies to follow, the latter of which has not occurred.

The Arsenal manager has put his faith in young players such as Cesc Fabregas, Denilson, Gael Clichy, Alex Song and Theo Walcott. With Arsenal still firmly in the title race at the halfway point of the season, it seems that his infant side have learnt from broken seasons and are finally showing true signs of winning some elusive silverware.

Diaby is one of the players to have really stepped up to the plate. Fabregas is a well-documented talent, even Alex Song is beginning to command a regular spot in the starting eleven, but Diaby looks to be the most natural successor to take over Vieira's mantle. A comparison publicly acknowledged on Arsenal’s website by the manager “They are the same stature, the same size and have the similar style.”

Not an inaccurate comparison. Diaby is even beginning to add goals to his game. The third goal against Aston Villa is certainly a goal Fabregas, or indeed Vieira would have been proud to have scored. But a future leader? Only time will tell.

A combination of injuries and inexperience has given Diaby limited appearances in his infant years at the club, but with the Gunners competing strongly in the Champions League and domestic competitions (ignoring the 3-0 humbling at Eastlands in the Carling Cup) there seem to be plenty of matches where the Arsenal number 2 can continue to demonstrate his quality.

With Alex Song away for the African Nations, and injury problems that hold a curse over Samir Nasri and Tomas Rosicky, it is the perfect opportunity for Diaby to make himself one the first names on the team sheet.

Diaby has already made 16 appearances this season and scored 5 goals, not bad for a defensive midfielder.

The long-legged midfielder has made only 2 appearances for the French national team, and with a queue of talented players ahead of him it is not surprising. But with Raymond Domenech (France Manager) under huge scrutiny and scraping qualification against Ireland, new options are likely to be explored. If Wenger has faith in Diaby, shouldn't Domenech too?

Patrick Vieira himself has cited a seat on the plane to the World Cup in South Africa as one of the key reasons for joining Manchester City. Roberto Mancini has inherited a dysfunctional defence at Eastlands, the purchase of a midfield protector not a necessity but experience you can’t put a price on (or you can at reportedly £150,000 a week?).

“In Arsene We Trust” is a popular phrase around the Emirates Stadium; his decision to let his captain leave in 2005 and no trophy since may have suggested it was the wrong one. But with Vieira coming towards the twilight of a glittering career, who is to say that Wenger’s new commander may not be on the plane with the former Highbury veteran, or even in place?