In Sunday's titanic Premier League match at Old Trafford, where an incoherent Manchester United hosts an Arsenal club whose dreams of winning the title are hanging by the thread, both teams will be playing for milestones.
Although a Red Devils victory would be the team's 100th victory over the Gunners in all competitions, the North London powerhouses might win back-to-back Premier League games at Old Trafford for the first time.
An Iberian manager in his 30s is in charge of one of the most prosperous clubs in England's history and is having difficulty motivating a quick turnaround. Although Ruben Amorim has previously said that he does not anticipate receiving the Mikel Arteta treatment from his bosses, these criteria might be used to any of Sunday's sides.
Arteta will make it 200 in the Gunners chair as Man United tries to make it 100 against Arsenal. The Spaniard is looking for a 119th victory to go along with reaching a double-century of Premier League games as manager of Sunday's visitors.
While the current Arsenal manager has been given plenty of time and resources to transform the Gunners into serious title contenders, Amorim’s position could be under constant scrutiny, especially if Manchester United's poor form persists. Their domestic season, frankly, has been disastrous.
In addition to sitting in a disappointing 14th place in the Premier League, Manchester United’s defense of their FA Cup title was shattered last weekend by Fulham and their former Gunner, Bernd Leno. This leaves their last chance of salvaging an abysmal season resting on the Europa League.
A 1-1 draw with Real Sociedad in Thursday's first leg of the last-16 at least gives Amorim’s side an advantage heading into next week’s return leg. However, they’ve won just two of their last seven matches across all competitions, with victories over Ipswich Town and Leicester City hardly being convincing.
Moreover, the 20-time English champions have failed to secure back-to-back Premier League victories all season and have conceded multiple goals in six of their last seven home games. Overcoming these challenges could allow United to mark their 100th win over their Arsenal rivals.
Only Sir Alex Ferguson, Pep Guardiola, Jose Mourinho, and Jurgen Klopp have achieved more than 118 wins in their first 200 games in the competition. However, each of these legendary managers has something that the Gunners' boss, Mikel Arteta, does not: a Premier League title as a head coach.
Arteta’s quest to bring another top-flight trophy to North London will likely extend for at least another year. Missed opportunities against Nottingham Forest and West Ham United have left Arsenal 13 points behind Liverpool. The gap could widen to 16 points on Saturday unless Liverpool unexpectedly fail to defeat Southampton at home.
Despite these setbacks, Arsenal delivered a stunning performance in midweek, overcoming a selection crisis in attack to thrash PSV Eindhoven 7-1. This historic victory made them the first team to score seven goals away from home in a Champions League knockout game. They now brace for a quarter-final clash against either Atletico Madrid or Real Madrid.
Arteta’s revitalized attackers will need to maintain their form if they are to continue their impressive recent record against Manchester United. The Red Devils have lost their last four league matches against Arsenal, including a 1-0 defeat in this same fixture last season.
Arsenal are now just 90 minutes away from securing back-to-back league wins at Old Trafford—a feat they haven’t accomplished since 1979. However, their FA Cup third-round loss to Amorim’s side in January offers a glimmer of hope to both Manchester United and their rivals in the red half of Merseyside.
