Pain in the Arsenal
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Manchester United vs Arsenal: 4 key player battles

By Ross Kennerley

MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 20: Cristiano Ronaldo of Manchester United celebrates with teammate Harry Maguire after scoring their side's third goal during the UEFA Champions League group F match between Manchester United and Atalanta at Old Trafford on October 20, 2021 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Naomi Baker/Getty Images)
MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 20: Cristiano Ronaldo of Manchester United celebrates with teammate Harry Maguire after scoring their side's third goal during the UEFA Champions League group F match between Manchester United and Atalanta at Old Trafford on October 20, 2021 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Naomi Baker/Getty Images) /
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LONDON, ENGLAND – NOVEMBER 27: Bukayo Saka celebrates with teammates Emile Smith Rowe and Nuno Tavares of Arsenal after scoring their team’s first goal during the Premier League match between Arsenal and Newcastle United at Emirates Stadium on November 27, 2021 in London, England. (Photo by Richard Heathcote/Getty Images) /

3. Emile Smith Rowe & Nuno Tavares vs Aaron Wan-Bissaka

Dropping a casual £50m for Aaron Wan-Bissaka in 2019, the former Eagle has been a mainstay in the team for his two and a third seasons at the club, during which time he hasn’t improved in the way United would have liked.

His breakout season at Crystal Palace was best noted for the insane defensive numbers, clocking up 99th percentile numbers for tackle and interceptions, pressures in the defensive third, blocks and dribbles completed.

Where he was weakest, however, was clear: Wan-Bissaka contributed next to nothing in the final third and struggled with spatial awareness. Those two points remain.

Emile Smith Rowe will have trouble beating him one-on-one, because everyone does. The 24-year-old is a superb man-to-man defender and the Croydon vs Croydon showdown will mostly have one winner.

However, when players run beyond him or behind him, he loses all sight of them. The amount of times United concede at the back post due to Wan-Bissaka’s dreadful covering is remarkable.

For that reason, whoever lines up at left-back, whether Nuno or Tierney, will be viewing this side of the pitch as somewhere they can hurt United. Combination play down that left to get someone attacking Wan-Bissaka’s blindside with second man runs will cause them harm.

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