Good afternoon! Thank you very much for joining
Sports Mole for today's Premier League showdown between
Manchester United and
Arsenal at Old Trafford!
It is arguably the defining fixture of the Premier League era, and for one of the men most synonymous with it, today represents his final taste as Arsene Wenger visits Old Trafford for the last time as Arsenal boss. Some of his best and worst moments have come on this ground, and while he will be desperate to end on a high, he knows that Arsenal's priorities lie elsewhere now.
We will have a closer look at both teams in a short while, but first let's check out the team news...
MAN UTD STARTING XI: De Gea; Valencia, Lindelof, Smalling, Young; Herrera, Matic, Pogba; Lingard, Lukaku, Sanchez
MAN UTD SUBS: Pereira, Rojo, Fellaini, Mata, McTominay, Martial, Rashford
ARSENAL STARTING XI: Ospina; Bellerin, Chambers, Mavropanos, Kolasinac; Xhaka, Maitland-Niles, Iwobi; Nelson, Aubameyang, Mkhitaryan
ARSENAL SUBS: Cech, Holding, Monreal, Osei-Tutu, Willock, Welbeck, Nketiah
What can we make of those two sides, then?
Well, the Arsenal lineup is very interesting indeed, but we'll start with the home side here as Jose Mourinho makes just the one change to the team which reached the FA Cup final at the expense of Tottenham Hotspur last weekend.
That switch comes at the heart of the defence, where Victor Lindelof comes in for Jones, who misses out entirely. Bailly is also absent from the squad once again, so Smalling continues alongside Lindelof at centre-back.
The headline news as far as the hosts are concerned is the expected inclusion of Alexis Sanchez, who will come up against Arsenal for the first time since leaving the club in January.
Sanchez has not been at his best since joining United - and so far it looks as though the Gunners may have got the better end of that swap deal - but there is no denying what Sanchez is capable of and no team will need reminding of that less than Arsenal. They will need to keep a close eye on him today.
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Sanchez could become the first player to score both for and against the same team in the same Premier League season since Wilfried Bony in 2014-15 today, but it is the man at the other end who proved United's most important player in the reverse fixture.
David de Gea was exceptional at the Emirates Stadium in December, making 14 saves throughout the course of the match - the most any keeper has made this season. His performance was integral to United's 3-1 win in what was one of the games of the season.
Antonio Valencia had been a minor doubt for this match after picking up a muscle problem last weekend, but he has recovered in time to captain the team this afternoon.
Further forward, Ander Herrera and Jesse Lingard are both handed starts once again, which hasn't always been the case this season, while Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford and once again forced to settle for a place amongst the subs.
The biggest surprise in the Arsenal starting lineup is the inclusion of
Henrikh Mkhitaryan, who makes his first return to Old Trafford today following the swap deal with Alexis Sanchez in January.
It was expected that Mkhitaryan might be held back for Thursday having only recent returned to training following a knee injury, but Wenger has thrown him straight back in which is a statement that he is still taking this match seriously.
As expected, Wenger has made some changes to his side with Thursday in mind, and that includes a debut at centre-back for Mavropanos, who also joined in the January transfer window.
This is some place to make your Premier League debut, and with Chambers alongside him Manchester United will no doubt see that pairing and really try to get at them with Lukaku's strength. Mustafi and Koscielny have been given the day off completely, so there isn't much support on the bench should they struggle to cope with the United striker.
Interestingly, David Ospina is once again preferred to Petr Cech between the sticks despite Cech having shaken off an injury now, which suggests that Ospina may have usurped the veteran as Arsenal's number one for the closing stages of the season.
In all there are eight changes made by Wenger to the side which started against Atletico Madrid on Thursday, with Ospina, Bellerin and Xhaka the only players to have kept their places.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang's ineligibility in the Europa League means that he is free to lead the line this afternoon having been forced to play second fiddle to Lacazette in the last week or so.
Once again Lacazette is not available in reserve for Arsenal today, but they do have Danny Welbeck, who has scored on both of his returns to Old Trafford as an Arsenal player. Indeed, no Arsenal player has scored more away to Manchester United under Wenger than Welbeck.
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The main focus will be on Arsene Wenger today, but Manchester United have a job to do and victory today would be very significant for them as it would mathematically confirm their place in the Champions League again next season.
Indeed, even a draw would effectively be enough to take them out of reach of fifth-placed Chelsea due to their superior goal difference, but Mourinho will want the win which would take them five points clear of Liverpool with a game in hand too.
United have been heavily criticised at times this season, mainly due to their unadventurous style, but looking back at the season Mourinho may be pretty content - with the obvious exception of being 16 points behind Man City - a gap that will grow before United get underway here.
The Red Devils have jumped from sixth in the Premier League last term to second this and have also reached the FA Cup final. Victory in that would see Mourinho win all of the trophies available to him - with the exception of the Premier League and Champions League - in his first two seasons at the club.
Mourinho's side come into this match in good form too having won five of their last six outings across all competitions, although the exception in that run was a stunning home loss to bottom club West Brom, which should give other clubs hope that they can come here and pick up a win.
As if losing to the bottom club wasn't bad enough, the result also gifted Manchester City the title which, while it had been expected for a long time, cannot have made things any easier for United.
In the Premier League alone Manchester United have won seven of their last eight outings stretching back to February, and that run includes some big scalps too, with victories over Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester City in that time.
In addition to the FA Cup win over Spurs, that means that United could beat every other team in the top six in the space of little more than two months with a win today, which would be quite the achievement.
One slight concern for Mourinho may be his side's dipping home form, though, with United having lost two of their last four outings in front of their own fans - a notable dip considering they had only lost one of the previous 44 before that.
Those two most recent defeats saw United crash out of the Champions League and hand Man City the title so they have been costly ones too, and Mourinho's men are today bidding to avoid back-to-back home defeats for the first time since January 2014.
United had been unbeaten in eight and won five home games in a row prior to that defeat to West Brom in their last outing, with the Baggies becoming the first visiting team other than West Brom to win at Old Trafford since January 2016.
The Red Devils do still have one of the best home records in the league - and boast the best home defensive record with only eight goals conceded - but defeat today would see them fall to successive home league losses for the first time since March 2014, when they lost 3-0 to both Man City and Liverpool in a row.
Interestingly, four of United's six defeats this season have come on a Sunday - including both of their losses at Old Trafford - so Mourinho's side certainly have not enjoyed having to wait for their fixture this term.
One thing we may not see today is a stalemate; none of United's 13 league matches in 2018 have ended all square, after the Red Devils had finished 2017 with three draws on the bounce.
Now to the man of the moment as Arsene Wenger takes charge of Arsenal at Old Trafford for one final time, very much marking the end of an era-defining rivalry between the two clubs, their players and their managers down the years.
Wenger lost his first ever match with the Gunners at the stadium - a 1-0 defeat in November 1996 - and he will also be keen to forget the 8-2 drubbing his side received in August 2011, a result which remains his joint-heaviest league defeat at the club.
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Old Trafford is a stadium which has held the good, the bad and the ugly for Wenger over the course of 27 previous visits. There have certainly been high points - including Marc Overmars's 1998 winner en route to the title and memorably clinching the double there four years later - but there have also been lows.
The aforementioned 8-2 loss must surely be the worst, but the Gunners have also been on the end of a 6-1 defeat here, while who could forget Wenger standing amongst the fans with his arms outstretched after being sent from the touchline for kicking a water bottle? Add to that the 'Battle of the Buffet' and Martin Keown vs. Ruud van Nistelrooy and this really is a venue steeped in Wenger's legacy at Arsenal.
The abiding managerial rivalry that went along with the fixture will always be Ferguson vs. Wenger, but the Frenchman has had run-ins with plenty of other managers down the years and perhaps the most bitter war of words came with the man in the opposite dugout today.
Mourinho has been glowing with his praise for Wenger this week, but he has also called the veteran boss a "voyeur" and a "specialist in failure" in the past.
This could be the final time these foes cross paths having previously met on 18 occasions before today, and Wenger will be pleased to see the back of Mourinho I'm sure.
Mourinho did not lose any of the first 13 meetings between the two managers, although he has since lost two of the last five as Wenger has begun to even things up a bit. Mourinho has never lost at home to Wenger's Arsenal, though.
Aside from the historical significance of this game, it is also a very important one in the race for a top-four spot as anything other than a win for the Gunners today completely rules them out of the running.
In truth, most Arsenal fans will have given up on that a long time ago, but their other route into next season's Champions League - via the Europa League - is a difficult one now so Arsenal could be left with nothing at the end of the season.
Even victory tonight would not be enough to keep Arsenal in the chase if Tottenham beat Watford on Monday night, but it would leave them in good stead to avoid the unwanted record of Wenger's worst points tally during his time at the club.
Arsenal are currently stuck on 57 points, and they need 10 from their final four games - which come against United, Burnley, Leicester and Huddersfield - just to equal that.
Arsenal actually have the second-best home record in the Premier League this season, but it is their away form which has let them down, with the Gunners having remarkably lost all of their five away league games in 2018 - the only club in the top four tiers of English football to do that.
Arsenal haven't lost six in a row since January 1966, and remarkably only five teams in the entire league have picked up fewer points on the road than the Gunners.
PREDICTION: Right, we're 10 minutes away from kickoff at Old Trafford, which means that it is time for a prediction!
This is a difficult one to call, with Arsenal not at full strength but still having the players capable of hurting United. I am less convinced by their ability to keep them out at the other end, though, and given Arsenal's shocking away form I am leaning towards a United win.
SPORTS MOLE SAYS: Man Utd 2-1 Arsenal
Manchester United come into this match unbeaten in their last 10 home league games against Arsenal, which is their longest run since a 17-match streak in March 1961 and including seven wins.
Indeed, across all competitions Arsenal have lost 13 of their last 18 away games against United, winning just twice in that time, so this is far from a happy hunting ground for the Gunners.
Surprisingly, United have not completed a league double over Arsenal since the 2011-12 campaign, and victory today would see Mourinho become the first person other than Ferguson to achieve that feat since Ron Atkinson in the 1984-85 campaign.
The reverse fixture was a thrilling affair at the Emirates in December which United somehow won 3-1 despite being cut open almost at will at times.
Interestingly, Arsenal have not beaten Manchester United in the month of April since a 3-1 triumph in 1978, despite having played 10 times in April since then.
During that time Arsenal have drawn four games and lost six from four FA Cup outings, five league games and one Champions League contest.
Right, the players are out and we're almost ready to go here! A quick reminder of the team news before we do get started...
MAN UTD STARTING XI: De Gea; Valencia, Lindelof, Smalling, Young; Herrera, Matic, Pogba; Lingard, Lukaku, Sanchez
ARSENAL STARTING XI: Ospina; Bellerin, Chambers, Mavropanos, Kolasinac; Xhaka, Maitland-Niles, Iwobi; Nelson, Aubameyang, Mkhitaryan
Before we get started there is a nice moment between Wenger, Mourinho and Sir Alex Ferguson, who are all smiles and hugs as Fergie presents Wenger with a gift. There doesn't seem to be any ill-feeling between them anymore.
KICKOFF: Here we go, then! Arsenal get us underway at Old Trafford!
Sanchez has been involved quite a few times in the opening exchanges, but he is on the end of a painful challenge from Xhaka here. The Arsenal man is slightly fortunate not to go into the book there.
CHANCE! The first sight of goal falls the way of United as Xhaka gives possession away in a dangerous area. A cross is only cleared as far as Matic, whose mis-hit shot falls kindly for Pogba. the Frenchman has a bit of space inside the area, but he snatches at his effort and skews it well wide.
Mkhitaryan almost gets in behind down the left channel, but his low ball into the box is poor and comfortably cleared away.
Here is that moment just before kickoff when the Premier League's two longest-serving managers met up at Old Trafford one last time...
Lindelof lines up a shot from all of 35 yards out and, while the effort itself isn't great, it bounces kindly for Sanchez, who picks out a clever pass to Lingard. The United man in is space inside the box but looks for the pass, and his low ball into the box is cut out.
United will probably be the happier of the two teams after the opening 10 minutes, but there hasn't been too much to shout about in terms of goalscoring chances so far.
Matic tries to feed the ball into the feet of Lukaku with pace, but the striker's ambitious attempt to flick it round the corner for Lingard only sends the ball into the arms of Ospina.
Arsenal have just been a little sloppy in possession at times so far today, and United are controlling the possession right now. The hosts have Arsenal pinned back in their own half.
GOAL! Manchester United 1-0 Arsenal (Paul Pogba)
United have the breakthrough as Pogba is left with a simple finish after Bellerin had done brilliantly to deny Sanchez.
Pogba himself really kickstarted the move by driving forward from midfield before giving the ball out to Lukaku, who shapes a beauty of a cross to the back post. Sanchez looks certain to score and does nothing wrong with his header, but Bellerin's last-ditch slide diverts the ball against the post. However, it then rebounds straight to Pogba, who reacts well to turn it into an empty net.
The Manchester United fans are now chanting that they want Arsene Wenger to stay. The Arsenal fans respond with a chant of "Arsene Wenger, he won the league here."
CLOSE! Arsenal almost produce a quick response as Maitland-Niles back-heels the ball into the path of Mkhitaryan, who drills his low effort just past the far post. He probably should have done better there, but it was a lovely team move from the visitors.
It is worth noting that Manchester United have won every single one of the 19 Premier League matches in which they have scored first this season, and there aren't many signs of that changing so far here.
YELLOW CARD! Xhaka is the first name in the book - no surprise there - as he clips the heels of Lingard to prevent an attack.
Pogba's resulting free kick hits the wall before Sanchez is quickest to the loose ball, but the former Arsenal man is offside.
Arsenal are getting into some decent positions, and they do so again here as Aubameyang collects the ball on the edge of the area, but he cannot get a shot away and another good attacking platform goes begging.
Once again this is wasteful from Arsenal as a neat passing move sends Bellerin down the right channel. Aubameyang has peeled off his man at the back post and it just needs a pass across the face of goal to find him, but Bellerin gets it all wrong and sends his cross straight into the arms of De Gea.
We're half an hour into this match now, and here is the moment which separates the two sides. There was a stroke of luck involved, but also some poor Arsenal defending when Pogba was striding forward...
Bellerin gets away with one here! A cross to the back post looks simple for him and he just tries to help it on its way, but he gets it all wrong and is fortunate that it inadvertently proves to be a great touch!
CHANCE! Big chance for Arsenal as Aubameyang finds a bit of space inside the box to get his head to Bellerin's cross. The striker doesn't attack it with any conviction, though, and his tame header is simple for De Gea to collect.
Arsenal have shown signs of their youthful team at times in this match, but an equaliser would not be harsh on Manchester United here. The Gunners need to be more decisive in the final third, but they are playing some nice football.
Kevin Friend gives Xhaka a warning and tells him to think about his actions after the already-booked midfielder was penalised for a handball. The last thing Arsenal need here is to go down to 10 men.
OFF THE POST! Out of nothing, United strike the post! Ashley Young collects the ball on the left and creates a yard of space to get a cross in, but he mis-hits it and it instead flies towards goal, crashing off the outside of the post.
All things considered, Wenger will be relatively pleased with how his young side have fared today, at least up to the final third. They are still very much in this game.
CHANCE! Aubameyang is on the other end of the cross this time as he swings a ball into the box which Nelson meets with a diving header. He gets his timing wrong, though, and puts it wide from 12 yards.
There will be one minute of added time at the end of this first half.
HALF TIME: Manchester United 1-0 Arsenal
The first half comes to an end at Old Trafford and it is Manchester United who go into the break with the lead following a match which has been fairly easy on the eye, if lacking in intensity.
Both sides have played some good football and it has been evenly-matched for the most part, and despite going into the break behind Wenger will feel that his side are still very much in this game.
The only goal of the game so far came after 16 minutes when Pogba tapped home into an empty net from close range, but only after Bellerin had made a brilliant goal-saving block to turn Sanchez's header against the post.
Lukaku created the initial chance with a lovely cross into the box, but Xhaka's defending has to be highlighted as he dove in on Pogba and then didn't track the United man back when he advanced into the box.
United have also hit the post, although that was inadvertent as Young's mis-hit cross almost caught Ospina out as it crashed against the outside of the frame of the goal.
Aside from that there hasn't been much to shout about for United in terms of goalscoring chances, with Arsenal arguably creating the better openings aside from the goal.
Arsenal's best chance fell to Aubameyang, but he didn't attack the ball well enough as he sent his tame header straight into the arms of De Gea.
Aside from that, Nelson and Maitland-Niles have both also been unable to hit the target with good sights of goal, but there have been enough moments for Arsenal to provide hope for the second half. They just need to be a bit more clinical in the final third.
KICKOFF: Manchester United get us back underway for the second half!
Good burst forward from Maitland-Niles as he drives straight at the Manchester United defence, but he doesn't catch his effort right and cannot trouble De Gea.
Concern for United here as Lukaku goes down and stays down after a challenge from Mavropanos.
MAN UTD SUB: Lukaku will not be able to continue here and he is replaced by Marcus Rashford.
GOAL! Manchester United 1-1 Arsenal (Henrikh Mkhitaryan)
Arsenal level things up six minutes into the second half, and it is Mkhitaryan who returns to Old Trafford and scores!
It is all very messy in the middle of the park, but Arsenal come out with it and Mkhitaryan collects the ball just outside the area. Lindelof is not quick enough to close him down, and Mkhitaryan is able to fire his low effort through the defender's legs and into the bottom corner.
Almost a quick response for United as the hosts up the intensity. A cross makes its way through to Young at the back post, but his half-volley is blocked behind for a corner.
The resulting delivery almost falls on the head of Rashford, who manages to divert it goalwards, but it doesn't make it as far as the keeper in a crowded area.
SHOT! Mkhitaryan is starting to fancy his chances here now. He carries the ball down the left channel before cutting inside onto his right and curling an effort high and wide of the target.
Here is that Mkhitaryan equaliser, which all came from some complacent play in the middle of the park...
Arsenal have been the better side in this opening 15 minutes of the second half, and all game United have been struggling for intensity really. It looked as though many of their players thought that they would be able to cruise to a 1-0 win in this second half.
A small slice of history for Mkhitaryan!
This is better from United now. They have upped the tempo and are looking a lot more threatening now as they begin to apply some pressure for the first time in this second half.
ARSENAL SUB: Change for Arsenal here as Danny Welbeck replaces Nelson.
MAN UTD SUBS: The hosts also make two changes as
Marouane Fellaini and Anthony Martial come on in place of Lingard and Herrera.
ARSENAL SUB: And one more change for the Gunners sees the injured Kolasinac come off for Nacho Monreal.
Those two Arsenal changes should actually improve the team with two first-team players coming on, so it will be interesting to see whether the Gunners can raise their game in the closing stages here. This match is there for the taking.
This is a million miles away from some of the past editions of this fixture in terms of intensity - understandably for Arsenal considering their big game on Thursday, but there isn't much excuse for United, who have been very flat.
SAVE! Welbeck nicks the ball off Fellaini in midfield before lashing a powerful effort towards goal from range, but it is right down the throat of De Gea.
Mavropanos does well here as he stretches every sinew to nod the ball behind after Martial had looked to pick out Fellaini at the back post.
SHOT! Fellaini collects a cross on the edge of the box and it sits up nicely for him to go for goal, but he cannot keep his half-volley down.
Valencia swings a dangerous cross into the box which Ospina comes for but never looks like getting to. Chambers wins it, and Ospina is then fortunate to get a free kick from Fellaini.
ARSENAL SUB: Ospina is still receiving treatment for that, but that doesn't stop Arsenal from making their third change as Joe Willock replaces Mkhitaryan.
Just over 10 minutes remaining in this match now, and this game is still there for the taking. It has been a fairly pedestrian game, and if either side can really up their intensity in the closing stages then that could be the difference.
Almost a chance for Martial as Sanchez picks out the winger on the edge of the box with a clever corner, but Martial fluffs his lines and puts a tame effort well wide.
Wenger will be pretty pleased with how his side have played today given that he made eight changes. They could very well still go on to win this game, which would be a huge result all things considered.
Ambitious effort from Valencia here as he races on to a deep cross from Young and tries a first-time volley which flies a long way over the crossbar.
Arsenal are struggling to get out at the moment, with their attacking players on the fringes right now. United are looking the much more likely to go on and get a winner here.
Smalling does really well here as he just about holds off Welbeck, showing just enough pace to beat the Arsenal man to the ball and knock it back to De Gea.
DISALLOWED GOAL! United think they have a late winner here, but after a long delay the linesman's flag goes up! A cross into the box is met by Fellaini, whose header crashes against the post before rebounding in off an unwitting Rashford. Old Trafford goes wild as Arsenal look for the offside flag, which is eventually raised.
There will be four minutes of added time at the end of this match.
GOAL! Manchester United 2-1 Arsenal (Marouane Fellaini)
Oh that is so gutting for Wenger on his final visit to this stadium!
It is a classic Fellaini tactic as Young whips the ball into the big man, who produces a very good header which sneaks past Ospina and just inside the far post!
FULL TIME: Manchester United 2-1 Arsenal
It is somehow fitting that a stadium which has seen such highs and such lows for Arsene Wenger ends with one final reminder of 'Fergie time' as Fellaini steals the win late on for Manchester United after Henrikh Mkhitaryan had earlier cancelled out Pogba's opener.
It is harsh on Arsenal, who played well and deserved something from the game, but ultimately that is now six consecutive Premier League defeats on the road.
Right, that is all we have time for this evening!
Thank you very much for joining Sports Mole for today's Premier League clash as Arsene Wenger's final trip to Old Trafford as Arsenal manager ends in heartbreak with a late winner for United. I will leave you with our match report, and be sure to stick around for reaction too.
From me, though, it is goodbye for now!
