Saturday, February 16th, marks a very important date in the calendar of English football. Two giants of the game, Manchester United and Arsenal, come face-to-face in an F.A Cup fixture that has, over the last several decades, proved to be simply, a classic.
The two teams meet each other for the 13th time in England’s most famous Cup title. Arsenal will be looking at building on their new-found success over their rivals this season, being unbeaten in the last three meetings. A 2-2 draw at the Emirates in the Premier League earlier this season meant that the bragging rights stay in North London coming into this game.
But Old Trafford is always a different proposition. Most staunch Red Devil’s will remember the mesmerizing goal by veteran Ryan Giggs at the Theatre of Dreams nine years ago in the same fixture. Old Trafford has never been Arsenal’s favorite playing field as memories of a 6-1 defeat close to a decade ago still linger in the minds of many of their fans.
The two teams meet each other for the 13th time in England’s most famous Cup title. Arsenal will be looking at building on their new-found success over their rivals this season, being unbeaten in the last three meetings. A 2-2 draw at the Emirates in the Premier League earlier this season meant that the bragging rights stay in North London coming into this game.
But Old Trafford is always a different proposition. Most staunch Red Devil’s will remember the mesmerizing goal by veteran Ryan Giggs at the Theatre of Dreams nine years ago in the same fixture. Old Trafford has never been Arsenal’s favorite playing field as memories of a 6-1 defeat close to a decade ago still linger in the minds of many of their fans.
Sir Alex Ferguson, who will be seeing off his 100th game on Saturday evening, will be hoping for an improved performance from his side after collecting only one point in two testing games. They will be banking on the mood of flamboyant winger Christiano Ronaldo, who seems to be holding the key to United’s fortunes this season. Up-front, they will require striker’s Wayne Rooney and Carlos Tevez, who have not been as potent as expected thus far, to put on their scoring boots if United are to frighten the current league leaders.
On the other side, Arsene Wenger will be rejoicing over the availability of rock-solid centre-back Kolo Toure and his fellow countryman Emmanuel Eboue, who come from a fruitless adventure at the Nations Cup in Ghana. Their presence will do a lot in filling the places of injured Gael Clichy and unavailable Bacary Sagna who have become superb on the flanks. The secret to a famous Arsenal win will lie in how well they manage to shut-down Christiano Ronaldo from the game. That means keeping a tight-lit on him on both wings, as he’s known to very cleverly swap positions with Ryan Giggs when need arises, as well as cutting off all delivery to him from, most likely, Paul Scholes. They will also need to keep up high levels of concentration against a very professional United midfield, while maintaining their famous creativity, orchestrated by Spanish sensation, Cesc Fabregas and the man with dancing feet, Alexander Hleb.
Generally, a very exciting game should be anticipated. Crunching tackles, quick-tempo counter attacks, and an electrifying atmosphere are always necessary ingredients for a beauty. Both teams boast prolific goal-scores, with United looking at Ronaldo to spare their blushes, while Arsenal rely on Togolese Emmanuel Adebayor to add to his already impressive tally.
Prediction
Manchester United 2-2 Arsenal
On the other side, Arsene Wenger will be rejoicing over the availability of rock-solid centre-back Kolo Toure and his fellow countryman Emmanuel Eboue, who come from a fruitless adventure at the Nations Cup in Ghana. Their presence will do a lot in filling the places of injured Gael Clichy and unavailable Bacary Sagna who have become superb on the flanks. The secret to a famous Arsenal win will lie in how well they manage to shut-down Christiano Ronaldo from the game. That means keeping a tight-lit on him on both wings, as he’s known to very cleverly swap positions with Ryan Giggs when need arises, as well as cutting off all delivery to him from, most likely, Paul Scholes. They will also need to keep up high levels of concentration against a very professional United midfield, while maintaining their famous creativity, orchestrated by Spanish sensation, Cesc Fabregas and the man with dancing feet, Alexander Hleb.
Generally, a very exciting game should be anticipated. Crunching tackles, quick-tempo counter attacks, and an electrifying atmosphere are always necessary ingredients for a beauty. Both teams boast prolific goal-scores, with United looking at Ronaldo to spare their blushes, while Arsenal rely on Togolese Emmanuel Adebayor to add to his already impressive tally.
Prediction
Manchester United 2-2 Arsenal
1 comment:
Hey Man!
I am really anxious for your update. If you are fair it should be up by tuesday. It was really a thumping! Now if Anderson caused some trouble you really need to close Kaka down. I do not think he will play though becoz he was injured the last time i heard a bt him. That could be a relive but watch out for Alex Pato!
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