Sean Dyche cannot wait for VAR, Higuaín and Hazard lift Sarri and the Pogba-Rashford combo looks good for UnitedSergio Agüero’s hat-trick, scored from a collective distance of 10 yards, was not achieved by accident but thanks to his instincts and endurance. At times City looked sloppy against Arsenal but Agüero made the difference, repeatedly finding himself in the crucial position to jab the ball home with any available limb. All of City’s attacking midfielders know where the Argentinian wants to be once they break into the area and Agüero’s improved fitness under Pep Guardiola helps him get there. Superior fitness was one of the things that made the difference as Arsenal wilted while Agüero and City thrived. The striker is...
Midfielder puts in a performance against Arsenal to suggest he can escape the angst holding back Pep Guardiola’s teamWelcome back then, Manchester City. We’ve been expecting you. Although on this performance there is still more to come, a knot of tension in City’s game seemed finally to be passing towards the end of this 3-1 defeat of Arsenal.At a cold, still Etihad Stadium City were fretful when the game was in the balance. There is something engrossing about watching a team that plays smooth, beautifully grooved football playing smooth, beautifully grooved football badly. Not to mention something mysterious about their periods of scratchy form, the way the same group of brilliantly skilled players can suddenly lose their nip and speed...
Ole Gunnar Solskjær is proving his tactical ability every week but Accrington’s manager could not see the magic of his Cup tieIt was a pity John Coleman saw fit to savage Jon Moss, stealing the headlines when his players’ tremendous performance against Derby deserved more attention. The referee did not get everything right but the Accrington manager was wrong to describe his decisions as horrendous, particularly as his supposedly worst call only led to the corner that resulted in the goal. Frank Lampard was on safer ground talking of the magic of the FA Cup. “We had 2,500 fans here and I thought it was great, it felt like a proper game,” the Derby manager said. “I’ve played in Cup...
Playing Romelu Lukaku on the right wing meant Ole Gunnar Solskjær created the space to get the most out of Alexis Sánchez in the win over ArsenalEasy game, this management lark. So easy, you wonder what on earth Ole Gunnar Solskjær was doing during his first stint in the Premier League: it didn’t seem this straightforward with Cardiff City. These days, though, it seems he can do no wrong. Not only did he allow Alexis Sánchez to invoke the immutable law of the ex by scoring against Arsenal but, far less expectedly, he deployed Romelu Lukaku to dismantle Arsenal from a position on the right wing. Related: Arsenal fear Laurent Koscielny has broken jaw in Manchester United defeat Related: Alexis...
The forward, back at the Emirates, scores only his second goal for United since last March as he enjoys the rare treat of playing against the Arsenal defenceJust past the half hour on a chilly night Alexis Sánchez did something he managed far too seldom in the dog days of the late-Wenger era. He got the Emirates crowd on its feet: fists clenched, leaping about the seats with something close to delirium. Albeit, on this occasion Sánchez had just scored a goal against Arsenal, choosing to celebrate extensively with his grey-shirted Manchester United teammates in front of the home fans behind the goal.You can hardly blame him. For one thing it was just his second goal for United since March...