Nineteen minutes of mayhem: A different Arsenal on show at Emirates in Man Utd rout

No set-piece goals conceded, clean sheet, blistering start, domination of the opposition, keeping the greatest threat quiet. These are some phrases you don’t generally associate with Arsenal against big teams. But on Sunday night against Manchester United, they defied all odds to register a sensational 3-0 victory at the Emirates. The tension in the build up to the game was palpable. Particularly since Arsenal were going into the match on the back of a disastrous loss 3-2 loss against Olympiakos at home. In addition, the Gunners had a woeful Premier League record against United: A solitary win in the last 13 meetings (D4, L8). To make matters worse, they were without their key defender Laurent Koscielny and were going up against the most miserly defence in the league so far. [caption id=“attachment_2454892” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Arsenal’s Alexis Sanchez celebrates after scoring against Manchester United. Reuters[/caption] The frustrations of the Champions League loss were vented against United, as Arsenal ran riot to score three goals inside the first 19 minutes. United on the other hand, still seemed to be on the team bus. Arsenal had come out with marked intent and desire, and wreaked havoc right from the kickoff. Alexis Sánchez’s clever back-flick from close range opened the scoring in the sixth minute. Around 74 seconds later, Mesut Özil doubled the lead before United had a chance to even gather their thoughts. Another crucial Sánchez back-flick released Theo Walcott down the left, who whizzed past Daley Blind and unselfishly provided a cross to Özil who slotted home calmly. The United midfield and defence were all over the place. After 12 minutes of relentless attacks from Arsenal, Sánchez cut in from the left, waltzed past a couple of defenders and hammered a thunderous strike into the top corner to make it 3-0. Boom! Gone in 19 minutes. When was the last time you saw Arsenal get off to such a commanding start? They have often been criticised as slow starters and been on the receiving end of such opening salvos. In February last year, they conceded five inside a nightmarish opening 20 minutes to Liverpool and went on to lose 5-1. A month later, Chelsea ran riot and killed the game by scoring three inside 17 minutes, and a demoralised Arsenal went on to lose 6-0. This time, however, it was Arsenal’s turn to be the provider, rather than recipient of such a beating. For the first half hour, United were at sea. They didn’t have a single shot on goal. This was the first time that Arsenal were ahead by two goals inside the first 10 minutes since that infamous 4-4 draw with Newcastle United in 2011, after having led 4-0. Prior to this, Manchester United had never conceded three goals inside the first 20 minutes of a Premier League game. Over the years, one of Arsenal’s biggest problems has been finishing. They create a lot of chances without any end-product. But against United, they netted three from their first three shots on goal. After an early burst, they switched over swiftly to slow down the tempo and made sure they didn’t concede in the first half. With most teams you feel it’s game, set and match at 3-0 at half-time, but that’s not the case with Arsenal. United did up the ante in the second half but Arsenal’s defence was up for it. The back four, supported ably by Francis Coquelin, Aaron Ramsey, Santi Cazorla and even Theo Walcott made sure that Memphis Depay had a horrible outing, Antony Martial was kept in check and the Wayne Rooney threat of yesteryear — he has scored 11 from 25 games against Arsenal, more than any other player in the League — was completely neutralised. Arsenal had conceded two goals from set-pieces against Olympiakos last week. They had conceded set-piece goals against West Ham United, Dinamo Zagreb and Chelsea this season, and it has been a major vulnerability over the years. However, against Manchester United, they defended the six corners well. Their defensive discipline was an improvement when compared to the Olympiakos game — 28 clearances as against 16, 86.2 percent tackles won compared to 72.7 percent, and conceded eight fouls as compared to 11. Of late, Arsenal’s discipline has been in question as they had Olivier Giroud sent off against Dinamo Zagreb and two players — Gabriel Paulista and Cazorla seeing red against Chelsea. But against United, Arsenal received just one yellow card. “This result especially will send out a message to the Premier League that we are ready to actually have a go this season,” said Walcott minutes after the final whistle, adding, “That desire was there, but we need to show it in every single game now, it can’t just be one offs.” That’s the real difference fans will be hoping for.