Although the scoreline shows it was only a 1-0 result, Arsenal absolutely played Manchester United off the park at Old Trafford, once again putting their historical Premier League rivals in their place with a win that affirms how gulf the gap in class is between these two sides,
Arsenal are in the thick of the Premier League title race against Manchester City, and this professional victory helps them keep up the pace with the season about to reach its finale.
Here were four Arsenal players who showed their quality against Manchester United, providing their latest case for a Premier League Team of the Season place.
CB William Saliba
William Saliba recorded four tackles in Arsenal’s clean sheet victory, standing out amongst his peers in defense with another colossal display at the back.
Arguably the best central defender in the Premier League, Saliba turned heads with a pair of world-class tackles, saving a goal for his team in the process of one challenge.
CF Kai Havertz
It was Kai Havertz who pounced on two positional errors from fallen giant Casemiro, delivering the assist that Leandro Trossard could not have possibly missed in the six-yard box.
The assist takes Havertz to seven on the season and is the 24-year-old’s fifth goal contribution, ensuring that the German stays hot at the most critical juncture of the season.
Forget just the Premier League Team of the Season, by the way. Kai Havertz belongs on the shortlist of candidates to be the Premier League Player of the Season, which includes a few of his illustrious teammates.
RB Ben White
Underrated right back Ben White definitely has a seat at the table with long-time Premier League superstar Trent Alexander-Arnold as THE right back in the 2023/24 Premier League Team of the Season.
The former Brighton star has taken well to his new position and put in another clinic in defense on Sunday, recording two tackles and two interceptions while bossing the young Alejandro Garnacho.
White nearly scored himself, too, providing intelligent positional sense when aiding the attack as well as his usual willingness to drive forward without the ball.
RW Bukayo Saka
Bukayo Saka is one of the frontrunners for the Premier League Player of the Season award, and the England international showed his class again this Sunday at Old Trafford.
Unselfish as ever, Saka was there to dictate play for his teammates in the final third, recording three key passes and three dribbles completed with a pair of fouls drawn across 81 minutes. The Arsenal star was the best attacker on the pitch.
The managing editor of The Trivela Effect, Kevin has 15 years of experience in digital media. He has been an editor for NFL Spin Zone, Daily DDT for pro wrestling, Autzen Zoo covering the Oregon Ducks, Musket Fire covering the New England Patriots, The Real Champs covering Real Madrid, Old Juve covering Juventus, Rush The Kop covering Liverpool, and Release The Knappen covering Schalke. His work has been featured in ESPN, Bleacher Report, Yahoo! Sports, NBC Sports, and other outlets. You can contact him at the site’s official Twitter handle @TrivelaEffect or via the site’s official email thetrivelaeffect@gmail.com.
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