A narrow 1-0 win doesn’t tell the whole story as United’s direct play unsettled Arsenal, while Viktor Gyökeres still looks to find his role in Mikel Arteta’s system.
Arsenal walked away from their first big clash of the Premier League season with a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Manchester United. But while the scoreboard paints a picture of efficiency, the performance revealed both promise and problems for the two sides.
United’s new-look setup under Rúben Amorim caused Arsenal plenty of issues, particularly with their direct play and clever use of rotations in midfield. Meanwhile, Arsenal’s star summer signing, Viktor Gyökeres, endured a frustrating evening as questions begin to surface about how best to integrate him into Arteta’s fluid system.
United’s Direct Play Caused Arsenal Problems
Manchester United looked to build their attacks with a diamond shape in midfield. With Casemiro dropping deeper, Bruno Fernandes pushing forward, and the wing-backs advancing high, United created overloads that allowed them to bypass Arsenal’s press.
Arsenal, meanwhile, set up in a relatively passive 4-4-2 when defending. The front two—Gyökeres and Martin Ødegaard—were tasked with shadow-marking central options rather than aggressively pressing United’s backline. This gave United’s goalkeeper and defenders enough time to play long balls forward.
Time and again, United looked to win aerial duels in midfield before launching quick transitions. The clever positional rotations between Mason Mount, Matheus Cunha, and Bryan Mbeumo unsettled Arsenal’s defensive line, while Fernandes’ forward runs stretched the midfield.
It was effective—but lacked end product.
A Lack of Runners in the Box
For all United’s progressions into dangerous areas, the glaring weakness was their lack of bodies inside the box. Mount, Cunha, and Mbeumo all prefer the ball to feet rather than attacking crosses, leaving United short when wing-backs delivered into the area.
As a result, United wasted several promising situations. Amorim will need to address this if United are to consistently turn control into goals.
Gyökeres Struggles in Arsenal’s Setup
While United impressed in spells, Arsenal had their own issues—chief among them the integration of Viktor Gyökeres.
At Sporting, the Swedish striker thrived in transitional play, running into space down the left inside channel and driving at defenders. But in Arteta’s system, his role is more about pinning centre-backs and rotating into channels to free up midfield space.
The problem? This often left Gyökeres in awkward positions—either isolated on the front post, marked tightly, or delivering crosses rather than finishing them. In comparison, a striker like Erling Haaland thrives because he positions himself at the back post, ready to attack crosses.
Unless Arsenal adjust to play Gyökeres in behind more directly—or the striker adapts his movement to target the back post—his goal output could be limited.
The Bigger Picture
For Arsenal, the three points are all that matters, but performances like this suggest Arteta has tactical work ahead if he wants to maximize his new striker’s strengths.
For United, despite the defeat, the signs of Amorim’s philosophy were evident. Their direct play, positional rotations, and pressing traps unsettled Arsenal. But their lack of a true box threat remains a glaring weakness.
It may only be August, but this clash was an early reminder that both of these Premier League giants are still works in progress.
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