Ferocious up front
Sparks flew last time these two met at Old Trafford in early December. That match ended 2-2 with both teams bounding forward with abandon. It’d be surprising if this game will be as chaotic as December’s installment, but both teams will still be looking to go forward with purpose.
Plenty of goals
The fact remains that both teams have managed to score in all but one of their previous six meetings. Only Man United failed to score when they were beaten 2-0 at the Emirates back in May 2017. Both sides have been rejuvenated by their new bosses this season and will be looking to play more positive football.
United have been transformed into a formidable attacking force
With 14 goals to his name the focus has been squarely on Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who was only superseded by Mohamed Salah at the top of the goalscorering table in the Premier League as recently as last weekend. But it was Alexandre Lacazette who made the difference last week against Chelsea and that’s why Arsenal’s top two will be the main danger for United.
Similarly United have been transformed into a formidable attacking force under interim boss Ole Gunnar Solskjær, winning seven out of seven. Marcus Rashford and Paul Pogba have been bagging the most goals, but with the likes of Jesse Lingard, Juan Mata, Anthony Martial and of course Romelu Lukaku the Red Devils are a dangerous proposition up top.
Shaky at the back
It doesn’t take a genius to see that both sides are lacking at the back, both in terms of the quality of personnel and the lack of cohesion their defensive lines are showing at times.
They haven’t posted back to back clean sheets at home since September
Even under former boss Jose Mourinho who is famous for building solid defences United have looked out of sorts . It’s no wonder a new centre back is touted to be the highest priority on their shopping list. United have managed to equal their clean sheets under their new manager compared to the rest of the domestic season but they’re still allowing to teams to go at them.
Arsenal have a solid record at the Emirates, only losing out to Man City on the first game of the season, but they allow teams to move forward. They haven’t posted back to back clean sheets at home since September.
Similar ambitions
Arsenal and United are locked on points in the league, vying for a place in the top four. They’ll both fancy their chances at taking home silverware in the form of the FA Cup. Both clubs have a strong tradition in this competition and it would represent a serious statement of intent for both managers to win this trophy in their inaugural season.
Betting Tip
Arsenal - Man United is an FA Cup classic, and it’s no wonder why the two most successful clubs in the competition have been singled out for a Friday night fixture. The problem is it’s simply too tough to call and that’s why I’m not touching match winner odds with a ten foot barge pole.
Instead I’m expecting goals. That’s why I’m going for over 2.5 goals in a game where I reckon both teams will expect to exploit their opponents’ less than solid backlines. The odds for over 2.5 are much better than a simple both teams to score. bet365 have the best of it with odds of 13/20 (1.65).
