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Manchester United travel to the Emirates Stadium this weekend on the back of a crushing win over Watford at Vicarage Road. Jose Mourinho's side is on a 3 match winning streak in the Premier League, boosted by the return of Marcos Rojo, Paul Pogba, and Zlatan Ibrahimovic. They are trying to catch up with Manchester City, and Jose Mourinho will not settle for anything less than a win.
On the other hand, Arsenal were lucky to take three points at Burnley last week, but dismantled Huddersfield Town in a 5-0 thrashing just a few days later. Clearly, the Gunners seem to be struggling for consistency.
Big money signing Alexandre Lacazette could not create the impact that Alvaro Morata and Romelu Lukakau created at Chelsea and United respectively. A win for Arsenal will cement their place in top four.
That being said, here are 5 reasons why Manchester United will beat Arsenal at the Emirates:
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#5 Resurgence of Ashley Young
Mourinho trusted Ashley Young on the left of defence even when he had the options to play either Luke Shaw, Daley Blind or Matteo Darmian and he is proving his manager right. The 32-year-old rejected several deadline-day offers to stay and fight for his place at United.
He returned late in the August after a lengthy injury lay-off and by November, he becomes Mourinho's no.1 left back.
Young has been one of the success stories of United so far. His blitzkrieg double against Watford at Vicarage Road proved to be a match-winning contribution. He was excellent going forward and equally good at the back. Most of United's attacking play at Vicarage Road came on the left side where Young and Martial combined well to torment Watford's defence.
Young will be key to unlocking Arsenal's defence at the Emirates and given his form, expect nothing less from him. He will be given license to run at Bellerin, Koscielny, and Mustafi. He is definitely Manchester United's player of the month and may prove to be the match-winner at Emirates.
Ashley Young's stats:
Premier League appearances - 10
Goals - 2
Assists - 2
Kep Passes - 9
Successful Dribbles - 16
Total Shots - 11
Tackles won - 18
Jose Mourinho has undeniably reinvigorated the midfielder, and it will be interesting to see if Arsenal can manage to restrict the rampant Manchester United man.
#4 Manchester United have the pace and power up front
This will certainly hold the key for Manchester United. The trio of Marcus Rashford, Anthony Martial, and Jesse Lingard have been phenomenal for Jose Mourinho this season.
Mourinho was reluctant to play Rashford and Martial together early in the season, preferring Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Juan Mata. Their inability to break opponent defences were brutally exposed, leaving Mourinho with no option but to play them together.
Lingard did not get a lot of game time early in the season, but he is proving his worth to Mourinho after a superb performance against Watford at Vicarage Road.
These three combine to give a lot of pace for United at the flanks and Martial, in particular, is having a phenomenal season. He has been simply unstoppable, on some occasions, this season, with 6 goals and 2 assists. Rashford has been consistent as usual, and Lingard provides the X-factor for Mourinho.
Romelu Lukaku provides enough power and strength up front, and he will be key for Mourinho in the box, to use the pocket of spaces created by the pace of Martial, Rashford, and Lingard. Arsenal's defence will definitely find it difficult to deal with the threat of this attacking quartet.
Combined stats of Rashford, Martial, and Lingard in the Premier League this season:
Minutes Played - 1727
Goals - 10
Assists - 9
#3 Arsene Wenger's poor record against Jose Mourinho
Manchester United’s Community Shield defeat at the Emirates Stadium on May 2017 was the first time Arsene Wenger got one better of Jose Mourinho.
Since arriving in England in 2004, as manager of Chelsea, Mourinho has dominated the rivalry with Wenger. They have played against each other 15 times, so far, in their managerial careers, and Wenger has ended up on the losing side on 8 occasions, with 6 games ending as draws. Notably, last year's encounter was the only time Wenger has defeated Mourinho.
Mourinho's side have only conceded 7 goals against Wenger's Arsenal in 15 games, and Mourinho is well aware of his plans for the Emirates clash. Mourinho is good at playing mind games, and he will not refrain from using it again this time. Expect Mourinho to dominate Wenger for one more time.
Head-to-head: (Wenger win - Draw - Mourinho win)
Premier League: 0 - 6 - 5
League Cup: 0 - 0 - 2
Community Shield: 1 - 0 - 1
#2 Wenger's over-reliance on Ozil and Sanchez plays into Mourinho's hands
Wenger's over-reliance on Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil has cost Arsenal on many occasions over the last few years. Since 2014/15, Sanchez and Ozil have contributed to 53.4% of Arsenal’s goals.
But in the 2017/18 season, Ozil and Sanchez have combined to score only 4 times and have provided a total of 5 assists, showcasing why Arsenal are struggling to break down opponents. The pair is yet to hit their peak this season, and Mourinho will try to exploit the weakness.
Jose Mourinho is an expert at man marking the opponent's best players, especially if the team depends on one or two to win the game. He used Ander Hererra effectively to mark Eden Hazard out of the game against Chelsea, last year, and he did the same to Phillipe Coutinho last month.
Wenger's over-reliance on his star duo will certainly play into the hands of Mourinho, and Wenger may find it difficult to outwit him.
#1 Return of fully-fit Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Paul Pogba
Manchester United's season can be split into two phases. One with Pogba and one without. He is clearly the force behind United's title challenge and his absence has proved costly for United. His return has allowed United to win 3 out of their last 3 games and they are looking menacing again.
Ever since Pogba has returned from injury, Manchester United have started to look like quite a force yet again.
He will be the key player for United against Arsenal at Emirates. Arsenal's central midfield doesn't rank as one of Europe's best and Pogba should invariably be able to boss the game. Aaron Ramsey and Granit Xhaka are not at their best and Pogba will be able to run the show from midfield, allowing United to dominate possession.
If Pogba is key to United's midfield, Zlatan Ibrahimovic is the man for United in terms of scoring goals. He is getting into the rhythm after a return from injury, and will play a pivotal role against the Gunners. He will provide options for Mourinho up front, also providing a big headache for Arsene Wenger to deal with.
