Overview
Michael Carrick can hardly expect a smoother start for his second term at Manchester United, but his next challenge is particularly harsh. That is the away match at the Emirates Stadium of the leading team Arsenal.
The "Red Devils" just won convincingly 2-0 in the Manchester derby last weekend at Old Trafford, where Man City was punished with sharp counter-attacks - something that can be considered the familiar "United style".
Although only controlling the ball 31.8%, Man United still launched 11 shots with 7 on target, while Man City only had a total of 7 shots. Expected goal difference (xG) also shows the superiority of the home team, with 2.27 compared to only 0.45 of the opponent.
Carrick's team even put the ball into the net three times and was rejected with two shots hitting the post and crossbar, before Bryan Mbeumo and Patrick Dorgu's goals closed the scoring deservedly.
After defeating the second-placed team in the Premier League, Man United will continue to face a bigger challenge when traveling to the home ground of league leaders Arsenal led by Mikel Arteta.
Carrick is currently unbeaten as Man United head coach with a record of 4 matches, including 3 wins and 1 draw - including 3 interim matches in 2021. More importantly, the performance against Man City certainly cannot fail to impress Arteta, despite the fact that Arsenal is 15 points ahead of Man United in the rankings.
After all, Arsenal vs Man United is still one of the classic matches of English football.
In fact, Carrick's only victory in the Premier League in his previous term came against Arsenal, when Man United won 3-2 at Old Trafford in December 2021.
However, Arsenal of 2026 is a completely different team. Arteta often takes the lead in confrontations with the "Red Devils", when he wins 8 out of 12 Premier League matches (2 draws, 2 losses), reaching a win rate of 67% - the highest among coaches who have faced Man United at least five times.
Arsenal have not faced any shots on target in the last two Premier League rounds - the fifth time they have done this this season. That achievement was only repeated by Chelsea in the 2020-2021 season, while Man City is the only team that did better with six times in the 2017-2018 and 2019-2020 seasons.
The core of that certainty is the central defender pair Gabriel Magalhaes and William Saliba - who are at their peak physical condition and form.
Saliba's importance is clearly shown through statistics. Arsenal have only conceded 90 goals in 118 Premier League matches when the French center-back was present, averaging 115 minutes to concede once. In club history, only Tony Adams has better results.
However, if there is any player capable of penetrating Arsenal's defense, it is captain Bruno Fernandes.
The Portuguese star is leading the Premier League this season in terms of assists (9) and chances created (62), despite having to be out for a few weeks due to injury at the end of last year. He ranks first in both live ball chances (40) and set-piece situations (22), averaging 3.4 chances per 90 minutes - the best record of a Man United player since Ryan Giggs in the 2008-2009 season.
Head-to-head record
Arsenal is holding a clear head-to-head advantage when they have won all four recent home games against Man United in the Premier League. This is the longest home win streak against the "Red Devils" of any team in the highest league in England since the period West Brom won 5 consecutive matches against Man United in the period 1976-1980.
On Man United's side, they have not beaten Arsenal in their last six Premier League encounters (1 draw, 5 losses) and have never experienced a 7-match unbeaten streak against the "Gunners" in league history.
Arsenal are also aiming for their fifth double victory against Man United in the Premier League, after the 1997-1998, 2001-2002, 2006-2007 and most recent 2023-2024 seasons.
In the first leg of this season, Mikel Arteta's team won 1-0 right at Old Trafford.
Score prediction: Arsenal 2-2 Man United
The match between Arsenal and Man United takes place at 11:30 PM on January 25 (Vietnam time).
