Arsenal 2:0 Manchester United

The Purist · May 5, 2017

Mourinho will focus primarily on keeping us to 0 goals and the team will be shaped around counter attacking ability. I would expect Martial, Mkhitaryan and Rashford (provided he is fit enough) to play. With a likely midfield 3 of Carrick, Pogba and Herrera.

We will revert to 4 at the back with Mustafi and Koscielny starting alongside Bellerin or Gabriel at RB and Nacho at LB. I thought Ox would play on the right but now that Xhaka is unavailable he could be moved centrally with either Walcott or Iwobi playing wide. Welbeck, Alexis and Ozil are certain to start for us.

I think it'll be a bore draw or a United win on the counter attack.

edcunited1878 · May 5, 2017

Could careless about this match now. On one hand, getting a result is one less opportunity for Arsenal to get their 4th place trophy. On the other hand, if United lose, then there goes the unbeaten streak...which will end some time and could give two shits. I rather United have lost a few more times and gained a few more full 3 points.

Just want to see Wenger have his meltdown moments and laugh.

marukomu · May 5, 2017

edcunited1878 said:
Could careless about this match now. On one hand, getting a result is one less opportunity for Arsenal to get their 4th place trophy. On the other hand, if United lose, then there goes the unbeaten streak...which will end some time and could give two shits. I rather United have lost a few more times and gained a few more full 3 points.

Just want to see Wenger have his meltdown moments and laugh.

Couldn't care less. Think about it.

peridigm · May 5, 2017

marukomu said:
Couldn't care less. Think about it.

Offside · May 5, 2017

Mouriniho will try some bore tactics. Wouldn't surprise me if we got a result. Arsenal look so shite at the moment.

Attila · May 5, 2017

Play the full second team. I doubt Mourinho will do it as he hates Wenger

Fighting for top 4 is a waste of time when we can win Europa and get a trophy + CL

marukomu · May 5, 2017

peridigm said:

It's an American thing. I doubt it will change as it is all over the place. I have read it at least 5 comics.

Giggs86 · May 5, 2017

With a depleted squad and all eyes on next Thursday that doesn't seem too good for us. But then again it's Mou vs the specialist in failure so I expect we'd smash them.

Mike09 · May 5, 2017

In my opinion we still need to go full strongest possible XI (same back four with DDG in goalie) but rotate the attacking midfield and play Carrick instead of Fellaini since he's suspended. I'll still play Rashford though. It's near the end so give everything you got.

Jonno · May 5, 2017

There is absolutely no reason why we cannot go to Arsenal and win with a rotated team.

9 months ago we'd have been mad to think that Rashford Lingard and Fellaini would be preferred in a semi final to Rooney, Martial and Carrick. Not to mention Mata coming back.

We can put a strong side out against Arsenal which will still be resting our form players for Celta. Sadly I think Pogba and Herrera won't be rested.

DDG

Darmian Smalling Jones Blind

Carrick

Herrera Pogba

Mata Martial Rooney

Android1974 · May 5, 2017

The words from the man himself: “The players are in accumulation with lots of minutes because we played nine matches in April and now this one, so 10 in four-and-a-half weeks. The players in that accumulation are not going to play this weekend [against Arsenal].”

manunited1919 · May 5, 2017

Devil may care said:
We should make as many changes as possible.

What about Phil Jones instead of Pogba? He has played midfield before.
Also, shouldn't Darmian and Valencia get a much needed rest?

Attila · May 5, 2017

United are probably more of a joke than us. They certainly have been the past few years anyway - the only difference being that their fans are in denial about it.

I want to win if only to give us a chance of still finishing above them in what feels like our worst season in over two decades. It would also be nice for Wenger to register a win over Mourinho before he leaves us this summer.

My vain hope is that Celta win comfortably tomorrow and we can then effectively end any chance they have of reaching the CL with a win.

Scant consolation given our season but watching us (finally) crush Mourinho's hopes and dreams would at least be a nice distraction.

No excuses, they are severely weakened, massively fatigued and just generally ****.

Another tactical masterclass from Mourinho.

Wenger could end up finishing his career without a win against Mourinho.

How embarrassing.

They've played 9 games in April with little rotation. Looked seriously jaded against Swansea and now have a Thur night trip to Spain to deal with as well.

Added to which half their squad is injured including all their centre backs. Its now or never for Wenger vs. Mourinho.

No need for 3 at the back, back to a 4231 with Holding in for Gabriel. Given their likely CB pairing Giroud is a must. Would play Welbeck and Sanchez on either side, Ox to come off the bench.

Confident we'll win, they'll be dead on their feet after an hour.

Fergie only beat Mourinho twice in 16 attempts. The reality is nobody makes a sound about it.

i think the real positive is that we're so **** that jose might not even see us as worthy of his 'big game' tactics anymore

*so you never know- maybe we'll nick a set piece or an own goal

(*arsenal 2017 philosophy)

This can't possibly be worse than losing to their b team when we desperately needed to win to keep the momentum going after beating Leicester last season..

Would be nice if we win, even better if we performed well, but I have no confidence in us right now and I just can't see us winning no matter what team Man Utd play or how tired they are..

I hate this fixture. Most of my mates are Manure fans and take great delight when united field an under 14 squad from the local blind school and still turn us over.

As bad as Manure are, we'll be worse.

https://arsenal-mania.com/forum/thr...d-7th-may-16-00-bst-sky-sports-1.30083/page-4
Wenger has broken their fans

Android1974 · May 5, 2017

So, Tuanzebe to face Sánchez, is that it?

manunited1919 · May 5, 2017

Mourinho wants to field a squad full of U23s. Yes, he hates Wenger, but he probably hates the FA even more. This will be his way to show down the FA, which will heavily criticise him when he fields a weakened team.

Attila · May 5, 2017

The Purist said:
Mourinho will focus primarily on keeping us to 0 goals and the team will be shaped around counter attacking ability. I would expect Martial, Mkhitaryan and Rashford (provided he is fit enough) to play. With a likely midfield 3 of Carrick, Pogba and Herrera.

We will revert to 4 at the back with Mustafi and Koscielny starting alongside Bellerin or Gabriel at RB and Nacho at LB. I thought Ox would play on the right but now that Xhaka is unavailable he could be moved centrally with either Walcott or Iwobi playing wide. Welbeck, Alexis and Ozil are certain to start for us.

I think it'll be a bore draw or a United win on the counter attack.

The Purist said:
In fairness, Giggs knows everything of what it means to represent United. He would have passion unlike anything you've seen since Fergie.

Contrary to popular belief.. the United job isn't that difficult. Unlimited money, poor league, referees generally bottle against you (don't take offence, it's true).. it's just that you haven't had a passionate character. Giggs would be a decent appointment.

The Purist said:
As an Arsenal fan, I would rather José get the job than Giggs. Sure, you might win a trophy or two in his years at the club but it would be hilarious to watch as I'm certain José at United will end in tears and that much is self-evident.. it's too combustible a situation not to. A demanding fanbase, a coach who respects nobody but himself and prefers to make himself feel more important than the club.

It would be a poor move for United in the long-term and one which could see the name of a great club dragged through the mud at the expense of José's ego. It's okay for a smaller club like Chelsea to accept this fate... but for United it would seem a little desperate.

As for Giggs, it would be a poor move in the short-term (potentially) but a good move in the long-term. One thing, as an Arsenal fan, that I do not want is a Man United man leading Man United through these more challenging times for your club. I want you to continue to employ poorly with managers who are distant from the club such as Moyes, Van Gaal and, indeed, Mourinho.

It's worth noting, again, that over both spells at Chelsea, Mourinho spent a staggering £471million on players. EDIT: And by the way, Carragher is a pundit who is supposed to give his opinion on these matters so pretending he's lying because he might have some deluded idea that his opinion will sway the United boardroom is ludicrous. What would be worse for Carragher than to say Mourinho will be a bad move and then watch as the man wins title after title for United? Of course he won't want that to happen.. United's fans will never live it down. If he says he thinks Mourinho is a bad choice, then he means it. It's not some kind of reverse psychology.

The Purist said:
Because Giggs knows what it takes to be associated with Man United, will have the backing of almost everyone influential within the club, will have a support network consisting not least of Alex Ferguson and would give United back their identity.

As for the Gerrard/Terry thing.. you act like Giggs hasn't been the assistant manager of United for around 2 years.. as well as interim manager at one point. It's a risk in the short-term.. but these kind of things can pay off. Look at Guardiola with Barcelona.

But please, by all means, opt for the circus that is Jose Mourinho. At a time when you need, more than anything, to steady the ship and establish a long-term basis and re-find what the principles of Man United are... you guys are clamouring for Jose Mourinho. I hope it happens.

The Purist said:
The truth is, you don't know until you see him in action with the adequate resources. One thing I will say, though, is that hiring a manager who has been at your club for his entire career and who has 'received the same footballing education' as everyone else there is a much more ambitious move than hiring a man who has been twice sacked by Chelsea, the last time on the back of embroiling them in a relegation scrap.

Your post reminded me of your desire of us hiring Giggs over Mou haha

Devil may care · May 5, 2017

manunited1919 said:
What about Phil Jones instead of Pogba? He has played midfield before.
Also, shouldn't Darmian and Valencia get a much needed rest?

That could be an option but I think Pogba thrives off playing every game, like Ronaldo. It would be great to rest the fullbacks but we don't have any options left now Young and Shaw are both injured.

MyOnlySolskjaer · May 5, 2017

Rashford and Bailly must be rested.

Android1974 · May 5, 2017

Infra-red said:
They may well do, but tonight's result has left the Europa tie open which means resting players for both the Arsenal and Spurs away games is now unavoidable. Our last remaining chance of battling for a top 4 place depended on us effectively ending the tie tonight, thereby allowing Mourinho to go full-strength in both London away games. That's now gone. We have to rest our best players in preparation for the Europa League. I'd go with something like:

De Gea
Tuanzebe Smalling Jones
Darmian Herrera Carrick Blind
Lingard Rooney Mata

Unfortunately the injuries to Shaw and now Young will mean Darmian and Blind will likely have to play both Celta legs and Arsenal away and the Fellaini suspension/TFM injury means Herrera will probably have to do the same. That is unless Mourinho promotes a raft of U23 players for the Arsenal game, which is possible (you'd think Willock and McTominay might be in with a chance of featuring).

Very interesting formation, you convinced me! Specially the two layer thick Sánchez protection there, with Darmian and then Tuanzebe. If the youngster could play left centerback, Jones could be placed there instead for extra assurance.

Not so sure about the other choices, though: Herrera needs more rest than Pogba; and Blind, definitely needs to stop; also, Lingard has been used very much lately.

horsechoker · May 5, 2017

manunited1919 said:
What about Phil Jones instead of Pogba? He has played midfield before.
Also, shouldn't Darmian and Valencia get a much needed rest?

Phil Jones bossing the midfield and whipping balls into Rashford's feet from 50 yards away

UnrelatedPsuedo · May 5, 2017

marukomu said:
Couldn't care less. Think about it.

"I could care less, but I'd have to try"

That line there is the origin of anyone that ever says it 'wrong'.

Android1974 · May 5, 2017

manunited1919 said:
You haven't been paying attention to what Jose says. In his post match interview he already says "I have to" when asked if he will play a very different side. He is referring to the Arsenal match, surely.

There is no trophy for 4th place.

No trophy for 4th place, sure, but would be disastrous if we gave up the fight earlier than needed, our adversaries dropped points… and then we'd lost the cup.

manunited1919 · May 5, 2017

Devil may care said:
That could be an option but I think Pogba thrives off playing every game, like Ronaldo. It would be great to rest the fullbacks but we don't have any options left now Young and Shaw are both injured.

Yes, Pogba wants to play, but Mourinho is looking at minutes accumulated, and knows Pogba is still coming back from that injury. By what Mourinho has said before and after the game, I think he will rest Pogba and many others.

Android1974 · May 5, 2017

The Purist said:
Mourinho will focus primarily on keeping us to 0 goals and the team will be shaped around counter attacking ability. I would expect Martial, Mkhitaryan and Rashford (provided he is fit enough) to play. With a likely midfield 3 of Carrick, Pogba and Herrera.

We will revert to 4 at the back with Mustafi and Koscielny starting alongside Bellerin or Gabriel at RB and Nacho at LB. I thought Ox would play on the right but now that Xhaka is unavailable he could be moved centrally with either Walcott or Iwobi playing wide. Welbeck, Alexis and Ozil are certain to start for us.

I think it'll be a bore draw or a United win on the counter attack.

Why do you think Wenger is going to revert to 4 at the back?

manunited1919 · May 5, 2017

Android1974 said:
No trophy for 4th place, sure, but would be disastrous if we gave up the fight earlier than needed, our adversaries dropped points… and then we'd lost the cup.

It would also be disastrous if a key player such as Pogba, Herrera, Rashford, or Valencia pick up another injury due to accumulating too many minutes in such a short time. Jose said we played 9 games in April, this is now the 10th game where they are playing with very little rest.

minoo-utd · May 5, 2017

Mourinho will rest players here, he hinted at it like twice now, so IMO we should rest Bailly, Valencia, Herrera and Rashford.

Devil may care · May 5, 2017

manunited1919 said:
Yes, Pogba wants to play, but Mourinho is looking at minutes accumulated, and knows Pogba is still coming back from that injury. By what Mourinho has said before and after the game, I think he will rest Pogba and many others.

If he goes to that extreme I wonder if he might give someone like Willock a game, might as well go for it and give a couple of the better youngsters a shot.

Android1974 · May 5, 2017

minoo-utd said:
Mourinho will rest players here, he hinted at it like twice now, so IMO we should rest Bailly, Valencia, Herrera and Rashford.

What about Blind, who played 5 games in a row?

ChaddyP · May 5, 2017

I feel we will field a weakened team sit back soak up their crap and nick 2 jammy goals and laugh at them

Android1974 · May 5, 2017

ChaddyP said:
I feel we will field a weakened team sit back soak up their crap and nick 2 jammy goals and laugh at them

Perhaps it will be not so easy to do with a bunch of youngsters in the team.

ChaddyP · May 5, 2017

Android1974 said:
Perhaps it will be not so easy to do with a bunch of youngsters in the team.

Rooney Smalling Jones etc aren't youngsters?

Android1974 · May 5, 2017

ChaddyP said:
Rooney Smalling Jones etc aren't youngsters?

I meant it will be much harder to “soak up their crap” with Tuanzebe or Willock on the side, for instance.

Android1974 · May 5, 2017

Well, Herrera started the same games as Pogba during this tough run of games, although the French had two minor injuries, so which one will be rested? The difference, for me, is that Herrera played 4 games in a row lately. The same could be argued for

If the criteria was solely the number of games started, the order of priority for being rested would be: Bailly (10), Lingard (9), Rashford (8), Valencia (7), then Herrera, Pogba, Blind, Darmian, Mkhitaryan (all with 6).

Android1974 · May 5, 2017

Could Tuanzebe play left center-back and Jones coming from injury right-back against Sánchez? That's the main problem with our lineup/formation for Arsenal.

SteveJ · May 5, 2017

Arsenal Mania said:
United are probably more of a joke than us.

Unusual & unique sense of humour there.

tekkers3 · May 5, 2017

Lets not forget Arsenal have been playing a 3-4-3 recently, so I wouldn't be surprised if we went with the 3-5-2 this weekend
De Gea
----------Jones - Smalling - Darmian---------
Valencia - Rooney - Carrick - Pogba - Young
---------------Martial - Lingard----------------

Bestie07 · May 5, 2017

I think this is where the unbeaten run ends. Don't really care either, just need to concentrate on Thursdays game.

edcunited1878 · May 5, 2017

peridigm said:

Exactly...I'm careless already. Roll on Thursday night!

edcunited1878 · May 5, 2017

Jose to play the juice players

red4ever 79 · May 5, 2017

De Gea
Jones Smalling Blind
Lingard Herrera Carrick Mata Martial
Rooney

Rest Bailly, Pogba, Rashford
Note Ashley Young looked like he hurt his hammy so he wont play

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