No chance to exact revenge
I think it is fair to say the most intense fan rivalry in Malawi among those who follow English football is that which exists among supporters of the Arsenal and Manchester United. That is because those were the most successful teams when people in this country started keenly following the Premier League. You are, therefore, always assured of exciting banter when the two teams have faced contrasting fortunes.
That was the case last weekend when United beat West Ham United away from home on the back of an impressive 3-0 victory over Greek champions Olympiakos in midweek while the Gunners had suffered a deflating and humiliating 6-0 thumping at the hands of Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea. Despite their low position in the league, the Red Devils thoroughly enjoyed this result and had their counterparts on the ropes.
You could say Saturday’s debacle was sensational. Arsene Wenger was taking charge of the team for the 1 000th time and just like he did in his 500th match, the opponents were Chelsea whose manager had only recently indecently described him as a specialist in failure. You could, therefore, feel that there was a lot to fire up the Gunners apart from the desire to win the league title exactly 10 years since they last did that.
But just like they did at Anfield last month, the men from North London simply did not turn up and the match was over within the first 20 minutes. You do not necessarily have to beat your rivals to become champions, but when you concede a total of 17 goals from three games against those teams it can be deflating. Wenger has called these emphatic results mere accidents, but that is clearly one accident too many.
And you could see the impact of that rout on Tuesday night when the Gunners dropped two more points at home to Swansea City. It must be noted that this was not a first this season because they have always followed up a heavy beating with a home draw only that this time they were playing a team many would have fancied them to beat. Arsenal’s title chances are now slim and they have to watch Everton’s charge behind them.
The only way Wenger and his charges can rekindle those fading title hopes is by beating Manchester City in this afternoon’s stand-out tie. They will not only leapfrog them on the log table, but raise their own confidence in the run-in. Of course, that will also please the other title contenders who know that the Citizens are currently the only side with their title chances firmly in their own hands.
Tuesday’s result made it difficult for Arsenal fans to exact revenge on their United counterparts who were hammered on home turf by their irresistible noisy neighbours on the same night. It was a result and performance that confirmed the gulf in class between the two Manchester giants and it was telling to hear David Moyes say his side is aspiring to scale City’s heights. That 10th defeat, which came nine days after another humbling by another rival, must have hurt.
Moyes now has to lift his team’s spirits ahead of this afternoon’s early kick-off against Aston Villa at Old Trafford. A good game is the least they need to be in the right frame of mind as they prepare to host German champions-designate Bayern Munich in the Uefa Champions League on Tuesday night. Even before this week’s events, almost everyone expected another thrashing, but this is exactly the fixture that United need to really turn the corner.
