THE more things change, the more they stay the same.
And after the best part of 20 years off the top of the agenda, Arsenal versus Manchester United is the biggest game in football once again.
All of a sudden, this means more.
Two clubs who feared their time as the eminent forces in England was over have revived their rivalry to slug it out for a Premier League title which has eluded them both for far too long.
And up in the directors’ box, 81-year-old Sir Alex Ferguson was relishing the sight of two old adversaries absolutely refusing to take a backwards step.
It is almost ten years since the most successful manager in British history retired but, on occasions like this, you still can’t keep him away.
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And he was by no means the only enthralled onlooker perched on the edge of his seat.
In fact, it is hard to think of a time when the Emirates has ever been this loud since it first opened its doors back in 2006.
You could argue the Arsenal fans haven’t had a great deal to cheer about during that time, so have spent most of those years arguing among themselves.
But suddenly they are all singing from the same hymn sheet in praise of ‘Super Mik Arteta’ and it’s hard to believe the positive effect their backing has had on the team.
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The Arsenal boss has worked tirelessly to get those fans on board and was at it again here, dancing up and down the touchline like a man possessed.
Even a 32nd-minute yellow card for demanding a booking for Luke Shaw couldn’t curb his enthusiasm — or keep him within the confines of his technical area.
He was so close to the action he was almost blocking United throw-ins at times as he urged his players on to greater efforts.
But he’s not the only one having a transformative effect on his team, because Erik ten Hag is working a similar miracle at Manchester United.
This last-gasp defeat effectively ends their title challenge for another year but does not detract from the speed with which Ten Hag has turned United into a credible force again.
Just like Arteta, he was constantly in the ear of fourth official Andre Marriner over every contentious decision as this game swung from end to end.
And the way he has got his players throwing themselves into every challenge and defending as though their lives depended on it, suggested that the days of them being a soft touch at the back are well and truly over.
In the end, it still wasn’t enough, as a second last-gasp goal conceded in four days left them down and out.
And maybe Ten Hag will now be regretting his decision to send on Fred for Antony for the final 20 minutes to try to protect a point, rather than going for a late winner.
Yet this Arsenal team has become so proficient at taking it right to the death that there is very little any opponent can do to stop them right now.
The bad news for the chasing pack is that they are only going to get better after bolstering their squad this month with the signings of Leandro Trossard and Jakub Kiwior.
Trossard enjoyed a late cameo off the bench while Polish international Kiwior was watching from the stands ahead of this morning’s medical to seal his £22million move from Spezia.
Arteta has been given the green light to spend because Champions League qualification is now a virtual certainty after six years out of Europe’s premier competition.
This result leaves them 17 points ahead of fifth-placed Spurs with a game in hand and a scarcely believable 21 clear of Liverpool and Chelsea.
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United still have work to do to cement their top-four status but will take heart from the knowledge they have caused more problems for Arsenal than any other team this season.
And that is quite some achievement.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
