It has taken Arsenal just two minutes to open the scoring against Manchester United – and it was a comical string of defensive errors from the away side that made it 1-0.
Granit Xhaka whipped in a dangerous ball on the left hand side and after both Raphael Varane and Alex Telles failed to clear, David de Gea managed to parry away a decent Bukayo Saka effort.
But after a slack piece of defending from full-back Diogo Dalot, who failed to pick up his man, Nuno Tavares tucked away from close range to give Mikel Arteta's side an early lead. You can see the goal below.
Arsenal take the lead in just two minutes 😱
— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) April 23, 2022
Nuno Tavares tucks home the rebound to make it a nightmare start on a nightmare week for Man Utd! pic.twitter.com/aZdwwBuXOq
Disgraceful defending from Telles. De Gea has perfect that 'what the f**k is this?' look since October. #mufc
— Samuel Luckhurst (@samuelluckhurst) April 23, 2022
Social media were quick to react to United's woeful defending in the opening stages on Saturday afternoon.
One fan said: "Telles and Varane that’s actually criminal defending. Like worse than Sunday League level," while another wrote: "So who we blaming for this one United fans, or are we going to finally admit that we might just not be good at defending as a unit."
A third commented: "The only thing worse than United’s defending is that knee slide celebration Tavares tried to do."
1998 - Nuno Tavares is the first player whose first ever goal for Arsenal came against Manchester United since Fredrik Ljungberg in September 1998. Opportunistic. pic.twitter.com/iKdORfH5fd
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) April 23, 2022
Despite conceding early on against the Gunners, United have looked dangerous going forward.
Manchester United captain Harry Maguire, meanwhile, was dropped from the starting XI for Saturday's clash against Arsenal, and interim boss Ralf Rangnick explained the decision ahead of kick-off.
"I had to make a decision between the three of them [Lindelof, Varane, Maguire]. Two could only play," the German told MUTV.
"Harry has had a tough week. I decided to give him a rest and play with Rapha Varane and Victor Lindelof."
Paul Merson & Clinton Morrison react to Harry Maguire being named on the bench for Man United's game against Arsenal. pic.twitter.com/8SBi9m6CgC
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) April 23, 2022
Thoughts on United's performance so far against Arsenal?
Let us know in the comments.
Featured Image Credit: BT Sport
Topics: Manchester United, Arsenal, Premier League
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