Manchester United-Arsenal Preview

Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag is expecting a full performance from his side when they make the trip to face Premier League leaders Arsenal in one of the games of the weekend.

The Gunners will play host to the Red Devils in a fixture storied in division history, with the pair firmly among the title contenders once again for the first time in several years amid their impressive revivals.

The rich form enjoyed by the north London outfit will make them a tough prospect, and Ten Hag knows his side will need to be near their best in order to defeat their rivals.

"It is obvious they are in a really good run and I think they deserve the position where they are," he said. "They have a really good mentality and winning attitude and that is why they are top of the list.

"It is up to us to beat their run and we will do everything to do that."

United will be missing Casemiro after the midfielder picked up a ban, but Ten Hag is insistent his absence will have no bearing on their performance.

"We beat Arsenal last time without Casemiro so we have an idea of how to deal with that," he added.

"We need a really good performance but if we do that, I think we have a good chance to get a good result."

Opposite number Mikel Arteta meanwhile weighed in on the capture of Brighton and Hove Albion's Leandro Trossard, who has arrived at the club from their Premier League rivals this week.

"It is good work from everyone to complete the signing," the Spaniard said. "He is a versatile player with high technical ability, intelligence and a great deal of experience in the Premier League and at international level."

On a potential deal for Jakub Kiwior however, Arteta was definitive in his denial of an immediate deal, adding: "We cannot talk about players that we haven't finalised."

Arsenal - Bukayo Saka

The England international has scored in his last two Premier League games against Man Utd - only Freddie Ljungberg (1998-2000) and Thierry Henry (2000-2001) have scored in three in a row for Arsenal against the Red Devils in the competition.

Man Utd - Marcus Rashford

The forward has been involved in eight goals in his 10 Premier League starts against Arsenal (4 goals, 4 assists) - against no side has he produced more goal involvements in the Premier League than versus the Gunners.

- Arsenal have won five of their last seven home Premier League matches against Manchester United (D1 L1), winning 3-1 at the Emirates last season.

- Man Utd are looking to complete only their second league double over Arsenal since Sir Alex Ferguson retired in 2013, doing so since then only in 2017-18 under José Mourinho.

- This is the 29th Premier League meeting between Arsenal and Manchester United on a Sunday, with only Chelsea v Liverpool (32) and Liverpool v Man Utd (31) taking place more often on the day. 65% of Arsenal's Premier League victories over the Red Devils have been in Sunday games (11/17).

- Manchester United won 3-1 against Arsenal in September, with the Gunners top of the table. The only side they've beaten twice in the same Premier League campaign when the opponent was top both times are Newcastle United in 1995-96.

- This is just the third time Arsenal are hosting Manchester United in a Premier League match while top of the table, with the previous two meetings ending in draws - 1-1 in March 2004 and 2-2 in November 2007.

Updated January 20, 2023