Positives & negatives from Arsenal's 1-0 win at Manchester United

Negative #2: Arsenal's dreadful off-the-ball movement

Diabolical. In the interest of keeping the language clean and suitable for all, I'll stick to the word diabolical to describe Arsenal's movement off the ball, or lack thereof, when trying to build attacking momentum.

This was about as removed from the days of Arsene Wenger as you could get. Back on the Frenchman's watch, Arsenal's players routinely rotated positions with varied and unexpected forward runs, mixing overlapping and underlapping surges at will, while always staying on the move to give the man in possession an option.

Sadly, Arteta's players rarely ticked any of those boxes in the red half of Manchester. The team shape was too rigid and players seemed hesitant to stretch the structure by chancing a run.

On the rare occasions players did move, they did so absent any pace, precision and strategy. The most infuriating example involved a sullen Martinelli and a strangely weak Saka.

They saw Odegaard bringing the ball straight toward United's box and merely ran in straight lines at half speed alongside him. Almost shoulder to shoulder with the captain.

Neither Saka nor Martinelli showed an appreciation of space to peel wide and clear the middle for Odegaard. Nor did either one drop deep for the cutback or make an angled run across Odegaard's face for a through ball.

It was a staggering lack of imagination that blighted Arsenal's whole performance off the ball in forward areas. Lost in this sorry episode was Gyökeres making a subtle half move just inside the area, proof the striker will be in the right places, if only he gets the right service.

Until then, the Gunners can at least be content with still taking a familiar route to goal.

Positive #3: Arsenal's set-piece mastery

Is Declan Rice the Premier League's best crosser of the ball since David Beckham? Well, Rice probably still has a ways to go before he reaches the levels of United's once-revered former No. 7, but he's staking his claim after another peach of a delivery put Arsenal on the scoresheet.

Rice whipped in a demon of a cross from a corner to position Calafiori to settle this game. The ball simply flashed under the bar and found its way to a grateful left-back who was stood on the line when he pushed his head forward to make the cross count.

Yes, Bayinidir needed to do better. Certainly be stronger and wiser dealing with Arsenal's six-yard box skullduggery, led by Gabriel.

Arteta's players stretching every rule to gain an advantage in the mixer is well known, but all of the greater height, repositioning of personnel and staying on nervous goalkeepers counts for naught without quality delivery.

Rice keeps on providing the latter, but the Gunners will continue to look too much like last season's vintage without more enterprise from open play.

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