Devils on fire
The hopes of Arsenal fans looking forward to a stuttering Manchester United were dashed Wednesday evening. A Marcus Rashford hatrick, Mason Greenwood strike and an Anthony Martial penalty saw the Red Devils take all 3 points and full confidence into the weekend fixture.
Marcus Rashford is on fire 🔥
Two goals in two minutes to seal a great win for Man Utd!
Just look at that Solskjaer reaction! pic.twitter.com/sL3oOozmiD
— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) October 28, 2020
Arsenal face Dundalk in the Europa League and are expected to make heavy rotation with the trip to Old Trafford in mind. Whilst Bruno Fernandes did not feature, Rashford’s substitute appearance became the highlight of the night.
RB Leipzig were without key figures but setup with a back three and enjoyed more of the possession. The score line may not have reflected the balance of play but the clinical ferocity United showed will concern Mikel Arteta.
Arsenal have been defensively stronger under the Spaniard however the shift to a more offensive yet vulnerable back 4 is slowly occurring. Intrigue will be surrounding whether the Spaniard returns to the 3-4-3 formation which took scalps against Manchester City and Chelsea in the FA Cup.
Donny is ‘fantastic’
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was very happy with how his team dealt with the German side, specifically Rashford’s performance.
“He came on and did well. That’s what we want from the subs. That’s only possible when the others have laid the groundwork and what a shift they put in. They do make you work, Leipzig. The high press, the counter press, everything, the intensity. And we had to really dig deep and work hard for each other,” said the Norwegian.
“Today is the day we had to rest a few because this season is relentless.”
Speaking about the proficiency of Mason Greenwood who scored with his first Champions league shot.
“Yeah, he normally does that with his first shot. He’s so efficient in front of goal, great finisher. His timing of his run, the pass from Paul [Pogba].”
Donny van der Beek has been left on the periphery since his move from Ajax but the United coach was very complimentary.
“Donny is a fantastic player and a fantastic boy and you see the work he puts down. Both on and off the ball you see the defensive shape with him. He covers the ground and he’s so clever with his movement.”
In regards to the game on Sunday Solskjaer said, “We made some changes today because of Sunday. We have a game less than other teams as well so we need to pick up points.”
Manchester United play Arsenal on Sunday at 4:30pm.
