Arsenal draw with Man Utd to deal another blow to title challenge
Declan Rice cancelled out Bruno Fernandes’ free-kick but Mikel Arteta’s side trail Liverpool by 15 points.
Arsenal’s faint hopes of winning the Premier League took another blow on Sunday despite Declan Rice securing Mikel Arteta’s men a 1-1 draw on a day of protest at Manchester United.
The Gunners could ill afford any slip-up given their title hopes hung by a thread, but their failure to match Liverpool’s result the previous day leaves them needing a miracle with 10 games left.
Arsenal sit 15 points behind the leaders after Rice cancelled out Bruno Fernandes’ free-kick as United impressively overcame recent exertions and the fact they were without 11 players for a game Ruben Amorim simply wanted to “survive”.
The toothless visitors failed to turn first-half dominance into an opener in Arteta’s 200th Premier League match in charge, with Fernandes firing the Red Devils ahead with a stoppage-time free-kick.
David Raya produced key saves before and after Rice rifled Arsenal level as a tame opening period made way for a frenetic second half.
Anti-Glazer chants filled the air from the outset on a day when the 1958 supporters’ group organised United’s most significant protest since 2022.
Thousands marched on Old Trafford and director Edward Glazer got a firsthand taste of that fury as he watched from the stands, where co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe was also in attendance and the subject of some ire.
Martin Odegaard saw a low drive held and Leandro Trossard flashed wide as Arsenal looked for a breakthrough that United unexpectedly provided after Trossard fouled Alejandro Garnacho 25 yards out.
Fernandes stepped up to the free-kick and struck past Raya, whose positioning was suspect, in front of a bouncing Stretford End.
United were looking more of an attacking threat, though, and Raya needed to produce some key saves.
The Arsenal goalkeeper superbly stopped Noussair Mazraoui volleying home a Diogo Dalot cross, then prevented Joshua Zirkzee flicking in.
But United looked tired, as they did in the final 20 minutes in Thursday’s 1-1 Europa League draw at Real Sociedad, and Arsenal half-chances were followed by a 74th-minute leveller as Jurrien Timber showed good awareness and cut back for Rice to slam a first-time strike past Onana.
Play was swinging from end-to-end and Rasmus Hojlund could have won it.
First Rice got back to stop the out-of-sorts substitute capitalising on fine work by Casemiro and, after Trossard struck wide, he was stopped from meeting a cross by Gabriel.
Garnacho lasered over before some stoppage-time drama. Odegaard saw a shot saved and an offside Martinelli lashed over the rebound, then Raya stopped a Fernandes piledriver before somehow getting back to stop the looping ball being bundled in.
