Back in 2002, Arsenal won the Premier League title at Old Trafford. On Sunday, they kept their dream of a first league triumph since 2004 alive by beating Manchester United thanks to another goal from the insatiable Leandro Trossard.
The Gunners know that their destiny is not in their hands, and that they will need the most unlikely of favours from Tottenham on Tuesday if they are to topple Manchester City. But at least they know they will have done everything they could to win a first title in 20 years.
Even if they knew that it is still unlikely that they will win the league, Arsenal’s fans sure were in a celebratory mood at full-time as the heavens opened and the roof began to leak at an alarming rate. ‘Old Trafford is falling down’ they crowed, and it was difficult to argue with them.
They might not end up winning the league, but this is a great moment to be an Arsenal fan regardless. For the Red Devils, on the other hand, these are the darkest of times.
GOAL picks the winners and losers from Old Trafford…
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WINNER: Arsenal’s resilience
Arsenal are taking the Premier League title race to the final day, and even if they end up without the trophy, they should be proud of everything they have achieved. After a brave and unexpected title bid last season drastically unravelled, many people suggested that Mikel Arteta’s side had the same lack of mental resolve that latter day Arsene Wenger teams were known for. But no one can say that now.
Despite United’s ragged state, this was far from an easy fixture for the visitors, as Liverpool can attest to. The Gunners had only won once in the league at Old Trafford since 2006, and that was in an empty stadium during the pandemic-affected 2020-21 season. But they did exactly what they had to do here, sussing out United’s weak points and withstanding a storm both on and off the pitch to secure the victory.
Their resilience was embodied by a monster performance from William Saliba, who was injured at this same crucial stage of last season. In 2022-23, Arsenal went into the final stretch in the lead, but threw the title away by dropping points in six of their final nine games without Saliba, losing three times. This time around, Arteta’s side have won seven of their eight games since holding City to a goalless draw at the end of March, and they responded to the disheartening defeat at home to Aston Villa by winning their next five games. They just have the misfortune to be up against a ruthless City side who buck all normal trends in football.
Last year, Arsenal had themselves to blame for not winning the league, but this time they have pushed Guardiola’s side all the way.
LOSER: Casemiro
It has been a terrible week for Casemiro, perhaps the worst of his entire career. The Brazilian was so bad against Crystal Palace on Monday that Jamie Carragher urged him to step away from top-level football. On Friday, he was dropped from the Brazil squad for this summer’s Copa America.
And here, he was too slow to get out of his own penalty area when Andre Onana kicked the ball forward. His lethargy meant that when Arsenal recovered the ball and Ben White set Kai Havertz through down the right wing, he was being played onside.
It was an unforgiveable mistake, especially for a player who has spent so long playing at the elite level. And yet, given how much Casemiro’s standing has plummeted in the last few weeks, it was not actually that surprising.
Watching Casemiro give away the only goal of the game and then seeing Declan Rice looking so comfortable in the Arsenal midfield, United fans will not want to have been reminded that they could have afforded to sign the England international had they not splashed out so much on the haggard veteran.
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LOSER: Erik ten Hag
All things considered, this was not the worst result or performance from Ten Hag’s point of view. But the fact that avoiding a heavy defeat to a team that they would normally consider their rivals was seen as a positive sums up how low his team have sunk.
There were plenty of negatives, though, above all in the record books. Trossard’s goal meant United had conceded 82 times in all competitions for the first time in a season since 1970-71. It was the ninth defeat of the season at Old Trafford, the highest number since the 1973-74 season – when United were relegated – and the joint-highest number of home games they have ever lost in a single campaign.
There are still more unwanted milestones to achieve which are in reach of Ten Hag. He is on course to finish eighth and oversee the club’s lowest league finish in the Premier League. Defeats in their final two games against Newcastle and Brighton, meanwhile, will mean they finish with the lowest points total of any United side in Premier League history.
WINNER: Leandro Trossard
‘Trossard again, ole, ole, ole,’ sang the Arsenal fans. As chants go, it is not exactly the most original or nuanced, but it sums up the insatiable form the Belgian forward is in at the moment.
Trossard did not have the easiest start to life with Arsenal after switching from Brighton in January 2023, scoring just once in 10 Premier League starts. And he began this campaign on the fringes of the team, starting just five league games before Christmas.
But right now he cannot stop scoring. Trossard’s close-range finish which ended up settling the game was his fourth goal in five games and his 11th in 2024. Rather like Havertz, who set up the strike, he has staged an impressive renaissance. Another victory for Arteta.
WINNER: Leandro Trossard
‘Trossard again, ole, ole, ole,’ sang the Arsenal fans. As chants go, it is not exactly the most original or nuanced, but it sums up the insatiable form the Belgian forward is in at the moment.
Trossard did not have the easiest start to life with Arsenal after switching from Brighton in January 2023, scoring just once in 10 Premier League starts. And he began this campaign on the fringes of the team, starting just five league games before Christmas.
But right now he cannot stop scoring. Trossard’s close-range finish which ended up settling the game was his fourth goal in five games and his 11th in 2024. Rather like Havertz, who set up the strike, he has staged an impressive renaissance. Another victory for Arteta.
LOSER: Erik ten Hag
All things considered, this was not the worst result or performance from Ten Hag’s point of view. But the fact that avoiding a heavy defeat to a team that they would normally consider their rivals was seen as a positive sums up how low his team have sunk.
There were plenty of negatives, though, above all in the record books. Trossard’s goal meant United had conceded 82 times in all competitions for the first time in a season since 1970-71. It was the ninth defeat of the season at Old Trafford, the highest number since the 1973-74 season – when United were relegated – and the joint-highest number of home games they have ever lost in a single campaign.
There are still more unwanted milestones to achieve which are in reach of Ten Hag. He is on course to finish eighth and oversee the club’s lowest league finish in the Premier League. Defeats in their final two games against Newcastle and Brighton, meanwhile, will mean they finish with the lowest points total of any United side in Premier League history.
WINNER: Premier League fans
The result was not just good news for Gunners fans, it was a boost for all Premier League aficionados around the world, with the possible exception of those of a City persuasion. Had Arteta’s side failed to win, then City could have wrapped up the title on Tuesday and rendered the final day of the season a non-event in almost every sense.
With Sheffield United and Burnley already relegated and Luton needing a 12-goal swing to avoid the same fate, the race to escape the drop is effectively over. The battle to finish in the top four and qualify for the Champions League could also be over by Monday if not Tuesday, meaning that the fight to finish sixth could have been the only thing that would have been up for grabs in the final weekend.
Instead, the most important battle is going down to the wire and all eyes will be on the Etihad and Emirates Stadiums, regardless of what happens on Tuesday between Tottenham and City.
LOSER: Sir Jim Ratcliffe
Sir Jim Ratcliffe had two options on Sunday when it came to supporting the club he part owns. He could have gone to Wembley to watch United’s women’s team in the FA Cup final, and had he done so, he would have seen the club destroy Tottenham 4-0 and win their first major trophy.
Instead he chose to watch the men’s team in a relatively meaningless game and ended up seeing a defeat. But worst of all, he saw the mother of all storms unfold towards the end, which led to the Old Trafford roof leaking to a devastating extent. That exposed the decrepit state of the ‘Theatre of Dreams’ and underlined the urgent need to invest in the stadium.
Attending the FA Cup final would have sent out a huge message of support for the women’s team and indeed the women’s game in general. It also would have been a day of celebration. Instead, Ratcliffe was left pondering the dire state of the men’s team and its crumbling infrastructure.
