Arsenal vs Manchester United: Arsene Wenger’s last big decision

Arsenal travel to Old Trafford for Arsene Wenger’s last every battle with Manchester United, and the dangers of this match are all over the place.

Arsenal and Manchester United is always going to be a big match, no matter what’s at stake in the big picture. When it’s also the last time Arsene Wenger will ever come to Old Trafford as an opposing manager (we assume) it’s even bigger.

And when he’s matched up against his eternal nemesis Jose Mourinho? It’s the biggest of the biggie bigs, if you catch my drift.

But that is the problem here, and the dangers inherent in the very nature of this game. Because all in all, this game means absolutely nothing beyond the emotional value attached to it. Yet, as we have come to understand, letting emotions govern how a football club is run or situated is not always the greatest idea.

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And that is where I get a bit antsy. I want nothing more than to see us hand United their own arse on a silver platter. I want to see Alexis Sanchez writhe and flop and drill himself into the ground like he has so many times before when wearing the opposite shirt.

I want to see Wenger celebrate goal after goal on the touchline.

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But more than any of that, I want to win the second leg against Atletico Madrid. Which gives rise to the problems of this match.

Momentum is a huge thing. Winning one at Old Trafford before traveling to Atletico’s new home in the capital would be a massive, massive lift that could power the Gunners to a rare, convincing away win, the magnitude of which you will not find very often.

Then there are the other problems. The ‘who do you actually play’ problems. Sure, you can play Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Danny Welbeck and Mesut Ozil and Aaron Ramsey (many of whom have been taken out of the equation by not making the trip) and field your strongest possible squad in the hopes that it lifts the team’s spirits a bit.

But then you risk injury. You risk fatigue, you risk all manner of things that don’t need to be risked for little more than an emotional hurdle.

It’s a balancing act. A win is huge for momentum, but potentially hazardous to physical health. A loss is damaging to momentum, but could benefit physical health.

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Consider it one of Arsene Wenger’s last big decisions of his managing career. I don’t envy having to make it.