.jpg) The match was played atOld Trafford inManchester. | |||||||
| Event | 2011–12 Premier League | ||||||
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| Date | 28 August 2011 | ||||||
| Venue | Old Trafford,Trafford,Greater Manchester | ||||||
| Man of the Match | Wayne Rooney (Manchester United) | ||||||
| Referee | Howard Webb | ||||||
| Attendance | 75,448 | ||||||
| Weather | Clear | ||||||
The first fixture betweenManchester United andArsenal in the2011–12 Premier League season was played on 28 August 2011 atOld Trafford in Manchester. Manchester United won the match 8–2, making it Arsenal's heaviest league defeat since 1927, 84 years earlier, when they lost 7–0 toWest Ham United in the oldFootball League First Division. It was also the first time they had conceded eight goals in a game since 1896, when they lost 8–0 to the now defunctLoughborough in the oldSecond Division.
Fixtures between Manchester United and Arsenal had seen a number of controversial incidents in prior seasons. Therivalry between the two clubs grew more intense since the formation of the Premier League in 1992.
Before the game, United managerAlex Ferguson took a shot at Arsenal managerArsène Wenger's record in recent years, saying he would "not have allowed" such a barren run without trophies,[1] but sympathised with him regarding the recent sales ofCesc Fàbregas andSamir Nasri, citing his experience with the sale ofCristiano Ronaldo,[2] and claiming he was irreplaceable for Arsenal.[3]
Manchester United had started the defence of theirtitle by winning the opening two matches, while Arsenal were looking for their first win of the league season, having drawn the opening match againstNewcastle United, before losing toLiverpool on 20 August 2011.
Manchester United managerSir Alex Ferguson picked the same starting XI to play against Arsenal as had beatenTottenham Hotspur six days earlier, a side that had only seen three changes from their opening-day win atWest Bromwich Albion. Centre-backRio Ferdinand missed the match against Tottenham with a hamstring injury, but had returned to training ahead of the Arsenal game;[4] however, he was only deemed fit enough for a place on the bench against Arsenal, and with defensive partnerNemanja Vidić also out with a calf problem,[4]Jonny Evans and summer signingPhil Jones continued at the back. Right-backRafael was a long-term injury concern with a dislocated shoulder,[4] soChris Smalling continued in his place, whilePatrice Evra captained the side from left-back andDavid de Gea played in goal for the fourth game in a row after signing fromAtlético Madrid in the summer. The midfield and forward lines were the same as in the two previous games, withTom Cleverley as the only change from the Community Shield, when he had come on forMichael Carrick at half-time.Darren Fletcher was in contention for a place in the team after a long-term stomach virus infection, but missed out on selection, whileJavier Hernández was only picked on the bench for the second game in a row as he continued his recovery from a concussion sustained on the club's pre-season tour of the United States;[4][5]Danny Welbeck started alongsideWayne Rooney in attack.
Arsenal went into the match with more selection issues, having had a player sent off in each of their first two games of the season, which meantGervinho andEmmanuel Frimpong were ineligible to play, as wasAlex Song, who had been charged with violent conduct and was serving a three-game suspension for a stamp onNewcastle United'sJoey Barton on the opening day of the season.[4]Wojciech Szczęsny started in goal, having won the job fromŁukasz Fabiański midway through the previous season. In defence,Laurent Koscielny recovered from a back injury that had ruled him out of Arsenal'sUEFA Champions League win overUdinese four days earlier to partnerJohan Djourou in the middle;[4]Armand Traoré started on the left in place ofKieran Gibbs, who had a hamstring injury,[4] whileBacary Sagna was left out entirely, and 19-year-oldCarl Jenkinson played on the right. In the absence ofJack Wilshere andAbou Diaby due to injury,[4] managerArsène Wenger picked a three-man midfield ofAaron Ramsey,Tomáš Rosický andFrancis Coquelin, who was making his league debut for the club. Up front, as expected,Theo Walcott started on the right,Andrey Arshavin on the left and captainRobin van Persie played through the middle.
The match kicked off at around 16:00 GMT in front of a crowd of 75,448 at Manchester United's stadium, Old Trafford.[6] United opened the scoring in the 22nd minute, when Welbeck beat Djourou to a scooped pass fromAnderson and headed the ball past Szczęsny.[6] Arsenal had a chance to level the scores five minutes later, when they were awarded a penalty for a foul on Walcott by Evans; however, De Gea correctly guessed the direction of Van Persie'spenalty kick and pushed the ball around the post.[7] A minute later, Traoré could only clear a cross from Rooney as far asAshley Young, who controlled the ball, shifted it onto his right foot and curled a shot into the top corner to score his first goal for Manchester United since signing fromAston Villa that summer.[8]
In the 35th minute, Welbeck suffered a hamstring injury and was substituted by Hernández.[6] Rooney scored his 150th Manchester United goal in the 41st minute, from a free kick awarded for a foul on Young by Jenkinson, who was booked; Rooney rolled the ball to Young, who stopped it, changing the angle for Rooney to curl it around the defensive wall into the top corner.[7] Arsenal did ultimately pull a goal back in injury time at the end of the first half, when a clearance from Evra only went as far as Ramsey; after Arshavin and Rosický combined on the edge of the penalty area, Van Persie allowed the ball to run through to Walcott, who shot through De Gea's legs for Arsenal's first league goal of the season.[7]
It took almost 20 minutes of the second half for either side to score again, but it was Manchester United who did so in the 64th minute from another Rooney free kick; after he was fouled by Djourou on the edge of the Arsenal penalty area, he ran the same set-piece routine as for his earlier goal with the same result.[6] Three minutes later, Rooney was again involved, as he provided the assist for an unmarkedNani to lob Szczęsny from near the penalty spot; that was to be Nani's last contribution to the match as he and Anderson were substituted byRyan Giggs andPark Ji-sung.[6] Park was involved quickly, first setting up Rooney for a lobbed shot over Szczęsny that came back off the post before combining with Young to find some space on the edge of the box and shooting low past Szczęsny into the far corner of the net to make the score 6–1.[7] Van Persie pulled another one back for Arsenal in the 74th minute; after a cross from Jenkinson was headed away by Jones, Jenkinson headed the ball back across the penalty area, where Van Persie beat De Gea at his near post with a powerful left-footed shot.[7]
Two minutes later, Jenkinson received a second yellow card and was sent off for aprofessional foul on Hernández, who was through on goal, meaning Arsenal had had a player dismissed in each of their first three games of the season.[6] Rooney completed his hat-trick, the sixth of his Manchester United career,[9] in the 80th minute with a penalty kick awarded for a foul by Walcott on Evra.[7] Young made it 8–2 in injury time at the end of the game with a curling shot from just inside the penalty area on the left-hand side.[7]
| Manchester United | 8–2 | Arsenal |
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Welbeck 22'Young 28',90+1'Rooney 41',64',82' (pen.)Nani 67'Park Ji-sung 70' | Report | Walcott 45+3' Van Persie 74' |
       Manchester United |     Arsenal |
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Match officials | Match rules
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| Statistic | Manchester United | Arsenal |
|---|---|---|
| Goals scored | 8 | 2 |
| Possession | 56.3% | 43.7% |
| Shots on target | 14 | 8 |
| Shots off target | 10 | 6 |
| Blocked shots | 1 | 6 |
| Passing success | 86.5% | 80.1% |
| Corner kicks | 3 | 5 |
| Fouls | 9 | 8 |
| Tackles success | 67.7% | 53.3% |
| Offsides | 7 | 0 |
| Yellow cards | 2 | 2 |
| Red cards | 0 | 1 |
| Source:Sky Sports[11] | ||
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Speaking toBBC Sport after the game,Arsène Wenger described the result as "humiliating",[12] but claimed it "was not an 8–2 game".[13] Wenger offered his apologies to the club's 3,000supporters who had travelled to the game, with the club offering free tickets to a future away fixture.[14] Ferguson was empathetic towards Wenger, saying "he has been a big adversary and will continue to be when he gets his big players back".[12]
Wenger moved quickly to strengthen his squad, signing South KoreanstrikerPark Chu-young from Monaco,[15] BrazilianAndré Santos fromFenerbahçe,[16]GermandefenderPer Mertesacker fromWerder Bremen,[17] andSpanish midfielderMikel Arteta fromEverton,[18] as well as loaningYossi Benayoun fromrivalsChelsea.[19] DefenderArmand Traoré was the first casualty of the defeat, being quickly sold to newly promotedQueens Park Rangers.[20]
In a poll conducted by broadcasterSky Sports in 2017, United supporters voted it as the club's greatest ever match in the Premier League.[21]
Despite the strength of the victory, Manchester United went on to have a trophyless season, though they came close to winning the league, finishing level withManchester City on 89 points; the league title was decided bygoal difference for the first time, with Manchester City taking the title thanks to a last minute winner bySergio Agüero overQPR to give City a dramatic3-2 comeback win and an eight-goal advantage over their city rivals. Arsenal finished in third place on 70 points.
