Yesterday, in our football news, we presented you with some shocking facts. One of them was that Manchester United striker Cristiano Ronaldo had hitherto only scored one home goal against the Gunners. But now, that has changed as Ronaldo extends his Old Trafford tally against Arsenal by two more goals, three in all.
In this 3-2 home won, United’s fans paid tribute to Ole Gunnar Solskjaer before the game began. They held up a banner in the Stretford End declaring “20-Legend” – a reference to the Norwegian’s old shirt number.
Manchester United played this home game with Michael Carrick still on the bench as their caretaker manager.
However, their new interim manager Ralf Rangnick did watch the match from the stands. And furthermore, after the match, Carrick announced he was leaving the club, with this win being his final coaching stint.
Carrick ensured that Manchester United remained unbeaten in his three matches in charge of the team. He assumed the reins following Solskjaer’s sacking last month, but now says the decision to leave is “100%” his own.
Ronaldo Extends His Old Trafford Tally against Arsenal by Two
After a 1-1 tie, Cristiano Ronaldo put United in front in the 52nd minute. Diogo Dalot found Marcus Rashford on the right, and Ronaldo clinically converted the winger’s low cross.
While this was a historic goal for the Portuguese, being the forward’s 800th, he also scored on a tie-breaking penalty. This second-half strike not only won United the match by 3-2, but also secured the forward a brace.
Meanwhile, this match’s coach, Michael Carrick, a former Manchester United midfielder himself, announced his decision immediately after the final whistle.
Thus, last night brought a close to his 15 years at the club.
“It’s not been an easy decision to make but I feel it’s the right one,” Carrick said in a statement. “I was going to take time off after I finished playing and it never happened. It feels like the right time to step away and what a way to finish.”
Meanwhile, Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta, in his post-match interview, saw positives in his team’s performance but thought they defended poorly.
“If you concede three goals at Old Trafford it is difficult to get a result. I was disappointed with the goals that we conceded,” he said.
“There were a lot of things that I liked In the game. I liked the behaviour of individuals. When you score two goals at Old Trafford you expect to get something from the game and that is a regret, but that is our fault. That is what happens against this quality of opponent.”
Finally, Manchester United midfielder Bruno Fernandes said about the match: “Every win is important. It’s been hard for us. Today we got a great win. We can be satisfied because we beat Arsenal.”
