Carrick’s dream start continues as United beat Arsenal 3-2 in pulsating away win

Manchester United pulled off a sensational 3-2 away win at Arsenal as Michael Carrick continued his dream start as interim head coach. It was a phenomenal performance from Man United, who exhibited both defensive discipline and attacking creativity to grab a valuable three points away at the league leaders. First half It was a promising start to the match for United, who appeared confident on the ball and challenged the hosts as equals. Bukhayo Saka attempted a threatening cross from the edge of the box, only for Kobbie Mainoo to block his effort. The Arsenal player raced back into the box after picking up the rebound, only for Luke Shaw to deflect the ball out for the first corner of the match. In the 15th minute, Arsenal embarked on a threatening counter, with Bruno Fernandes giving the ball away to Saka. He then laid the ball off to William Saliba, who sprinted down the right before slotting the ball through to Declan Rice in the centre. Fortunately for the visitors, Lisandro Martinez blocked the shot. Three minutes later, Arsenal got a dangerous free-kick, with Rice thumping a cross to Martin Zubimendi. While he managed to get to the ball ahead of United’s defenders, Lammens did superbly to parry his header from close range. After 20 minutes of play, United were yet to get a shot on goal. Still, they showed great defensive resilience and confidence on the ball, providing fans with some hope of eventual success. In the 29th minute, the hosts finally found a breakthrough. While Patrick Dorgu did well to head an Arsenal cross, the loose ball found Saka, who laid it off to Martin Odegaard, who subsequently passed the ball to Jurrien Timber in the centre. While Martinez did well to stay on Timber, the United defender accidentally turned the ball into his own net. United clearly needed to finally start building some attacking momentum if they hoped to find a way back into the contest. Finally, in the 33rd minute, United did just that. Mainoo sent the ball forward to Bryan Mbeumo, who threaded the ball to Fernandes. Saliba did well to cover Fernandes, who blasted his shot wide. Barely three minutes later, against the run of play, United levelled the score line. Mbeumo did well to intercept a pass from Zubimendi in Arsenal’s final third. After getting his foot to the ball, the United forward decided to allow the goalkeeper time to come out of his goal before tapping the ball from his left foot to his right and slotting it past the keeper and into the back of the net. With two minutes of stoppage time on the board, Mbeumo almost put United in the lead. Fernandes picked Mbeumo out with a witty long ball, with the Cameroonian volleying the ball over the keeper. Unfortunately for him, the shot was a little too high. Although United were on the backfoot for most of the first half, they did an admirable job at drawing level and showing the home side that they were indeed a legitimate threat. Michael Carrick would have surely been happy with his team’s performance, pushing them to keep up the pressure in the second half. Second half Just five minutes after the break, United did exactly what was required of them. Patrick Dorgu received a ball from Fernandes, breezing past his marker and slamming an impressive half-volley at goal to blast his team into the lead. What a start to the second half for United as they grabbed a 2-1 lead. Three minutes later, United’s latest goalscorer was on the prowl again. Dorgu took an opportunistic shot from the left of the box that breezed wide of the near post. Saka sought to draw the hosts levelwhen he cut into the box and took a shot that Casemiro did well to block. With 23 minutes left on the clock, Mbeumo was subbed off for Matheus Cunha. Mikel Merino took a shot from outside the box that Lammens managed to save. It was a controversial moment, however, as Harry Maguire had slid in to block the shot, with his hand brushing the ball on its way in. Upon review, VAR agreed with the referee’s decision not to award a penalty, arguing that Maguire’s hand was in a natural position for someone falling the way he did. Saka crossed the ball to Viktor Gyokeres, who ballooned his header over the top. Ten minutes before full-time, Benjamin Sesko came on for Dorgu, who appeared to be struggling with a slight injury. Just a few moments later, Saka ventured to the edge of the box, taking a sneaky low shot at the near post that a highly-alert Lammens parried out for a corner. The subsequent corner resulted in a goalmouth scramble, with United unable to get the ball out of the box. Merino managed to get his eye on the loose ball, tapping it across the goal line before a defender cleared the ball out. Upon inspection, the referee and VAR determined that the ball crossed the line, bringing the score to 2-2. Suddenly, just as it seemed that the hosts were back on top, Cunha silenced the Emirates with a scintillating strike. The Brazilian cut from the flank into the centre, slamming a far-range screamer into the right corner that the keeper had no chance of saving. Suddenly, victory was within United’s grasp. With one minute of regular time to go, Carrick replaced Amad with Noussair Mazraoui, clearly looking to tighten up his defence in order to hold out for victory. This decision sure seemed sensible as seven minutes of added time were then announced. Five minutes into stoppage time, the referee halted play after Diogo Dalot slumped to the ground with a head injury. Ultimately, he proved to be alright as he rose back to his feet. Despite the home side keeping up the pressure, United did admirably to keep them at bay and secure a most valuable three points away from home. It was a phenomenal performance for United, who beat the odds to defeat their bitter rivals atop the Premier League table. Suddenly, it seemed as if life was way better under Carrick than it had been for years, with United expressing jubilation as the full-time whistle blew. Starting XI: Lammens, Shaw, Martinez, Maguire, Dalot, Mainoo, Casemiro, Dorgu, Fernandes, Amad, Mbeumo Subs: Cunha, Sesko, Mazraoui Featured image Justin Setterfield via Getty Images The Peoples Person has been one of the world’s leading Man United news sites for over a decade. Follow us on Bluesky: @peoplesperson.bsky.social Mathew Cohen A faithful Manchester United supporter, Mathew has worked as a football writer and analyst for SB Nation, FanSided, and now The Peoples Person. Mathew’s heroes include David Beckham, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Sir Alex Ferguson, all of whom played their part in creating some special childhood memories.