The biggest story of the Premier League weekend came in the final match, as Arsenal leapfrogged Manchester United into fourth place with a 2-0 victory that, despite Romelu Lukaku missing several big chances, was just about deserved. Arsenal had a major advantage early in Sunday’s match, one which could define how the race for the top four plays out going forward. Arsenal’s tactics were complex and measured, whereas Man Utd’s confusion was betrayed by their manager’s frequent formation changes during the match.
Elsewhere, Liverpool’s use of Adam Lallana in central midfield helped them to victory against Burnley, Rafael Benitez’s half-time tactical switch saw Newcastle United overturn a 2-0 deficit at home to Everton, and Brendan Rodgers revealed his tactical blueprint for Leicester City as they beat Fulham. Man Utd
But the most important reason for the disparity between the two sides was Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s use of a 4-4-2. A 4-4-2 very rarely works against a 3-5-2 because the latter has numerical advantages all over the pitch: a three-on-two in defence, a three-on-two in midfield, and spare wing-backs to support the two-on-two up front.
On Sunday, Man Utd’s shape was so flat that they could not build out from the back, meaning aimless passing towards the strikers as Paul Pogba struggled to make an impact from the left wing. From a defensive standpoint it was even worse.
Nemanja Matic and Fred had to push onto Aaron Ramsey and Granit Xhaka, which meant Arsenal had a spare man – Mesut Ozil – to drift into the number 10 space. He dominated early proceedings, while Arsenal’s numerical advantage in central midfield led directly to the first goal. Xhaka had acres of space to shoot because of the mismatch caused by Solskjaer’s formation.