Manchester United vs. Arsenal: Team News, Preview, Live Stream, TV Info
April 28, 2018
Arsene Wenger will take an Arsenal team to Old Trafford to face Manchester United for the final time on Sunday.
The Gunners boss has enjoyed some of his most iconic Premier League moments at the stadium, including numerous battles with legendary Red Devils boss Sir Alex Ferguson. In the short term, Wenger will want to see his team arrest their awful away record since the turn of the year.
As for Manchester United, Jose Mourinho appears to have got his team playing well at an ideal point in the campaign. They were excellent in beating Tottenham Hotspur at Wembley Stadium in the FA Cup semi-final in their most recent outing and are on course to secure second place in the table.
Team News
Manchester United: After their excellent win over Spurs, Mourinho is likely to stick with the same team. The system was able to get the best out of key men Alexis Sanchez and Paul Pogba.
Likely XI: David De Gea: Antonio Valencia, Phil Jones, Chris Smalling, Ashley Young; Nemanja Matic, Ander Herrera, Paul Pogba; Jesse Lingard, Romelu Lukaku and Alexis Sanchez.
Arsenal: Given this fixture with United is sandwiched between the UEFA Europa League semi-final games against Atletico Madrid, changes are surely on the cards for the Gunners. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who is cup-tied, should be the most notable returnee. Former United man Henrikh Mkhitaryan is a doubt.
Likely XI: Petr Cech; Hector Bellerin, Calum Chambers, Shkodran Mustafi, Sead Kolasinac; Granit Xhaka, Jack Wilshere, Aaron Ramsey; Danny Welbeck, Alex Iwobi and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
Date: Sunday, April 29
Time: 4:30 p.m. (BST), 11:30 a.m. (ET)
TV Info: Sky Sports Football (UK), NBC Sports (U.S.)
Live Stream: Sky Go (UK), NBC Sports App (U.S.)
Match Preview
There's been an outpouring of appreciation for Wenger since he announced earlier in April that this season would be his last with the Gunners. However, you get the impression United supporters and Mourinho won't roll out the red carpet for him on Sunday.
After all, Wenger has had some intense battles with United and Mourinho down the years. The Frenchman famously saw his side clinch the Premier League title at the Theatre of Dreams in 2002 thanks to a goal from Sylvain Wiltord.
Still, the UtdHQ Twitter account suggested the home supporters will show the outgoing Arsenal boss some respect:
It will be interesting to see what goes on on the sidelines between Wenger and Mourinho, as the pair have never seen eye to eye.
Mourinho memorably called Wenger a "specialist in failure" in 2014, when he was the Chelsea manager. However, as BBC Sport relayed, the United boss seemed contrite in his press conference ahead of the game:
In many respects, the match feels a little insignificant here. United are nestled comfortably in second place, and Arsenal are secure in sixth.
The most intriguing on-field storyline is the prospect of Sanchez coming up against his former side. He and Mkhitaryan were involved in a straight swap deal in January, with the Red Devils deemed to have pulled off a major coup in landing the Chile international.
Sanchez has had a slow start to life at Old Trafford, but he showed what he is capable of with a key goal against Spurs at Wembley. Football writer Sam Pilger commented on the winger's recent upturn in form:
Given Arsenal's issues on the road—they have lost all their away league matches in 2018—and their focus on the Europa League, it's tough to see anything other than a United triumph here.
The points for Mourinho's men would put them in a commanding position ahead of Liverpool and Tottenham with three games left to play. The Portuguese will also want to see the likes of Sanchez, Pogba and Romelu Lukaku continue to build momentum ahead of their FA Cup final showdown with Chelsea on May 19.