Arsenal’s top four rivals analysed: Man Utd, Tottenham, West Ham, Wolves

Manchester United – An Embarrassment of Talent

In an interesting sort of way, Manchester United are the antithesis of Arsenal: boasting exceptional quality across the pitch but without the style and structure in place to best utilise it.

Here Arsenal are with a defined way of playing and a squad fully absorbed into those ideas, whereas United have flip-flopped between styles and managers all with entirely differing philosophies. However, they’ve been held together by the strength of their squad. And it’s frighteningly strong.

What they lack in central midfield they make up for in attacking positions. While Cristiano Ronaldo is a luxury item that burdens the long-term development of the team, he is still annoyingly effective at finding the back of the net. He is a ‘moment’ player, and with a game tied 0-0, he’s one of two standout names in United’s squad that can secure them points whether undeserved or not.

He and Bruno Fernandes can conjure something out of nothing. When a game it tightly contested and set to tilt on fine margins, having players to take advantage of those moments can be the difference between fifth and fourth.

Then you’ve got someone like Jadon Sancho who as soon as he clicks into gear will remind everyone why he was the best player in the Bundesliga outside of Bayern Munich for all those seasons.

United will win matches they don’t deserve on account of this. Recently, Brentford were in utter control of the Red Devils and spurned multiple opportunities, only to go on to lose 3-0. De Gea, who has been outstanding, provided his ‘moment’ in goal and then Bruno and Ronaldo did the rest.

Their superpower is the strength of their bank. It’s bought them quality.

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