DECLAN RICE twice spared Arsenal from the embarrassment of defeat by lowly Manchester United with a wicked equaliser and a brilliant saving tackle.
But on a day when the Old Trafford crowd swung from mutiny towards hope, it now looks increasingly likely that Liverpool will equal United’s record of 20 top-flight titles this side of Easter.
Arne Slot’s men lead the depleted Gunners by 15 points and there is nothing to suggest Arsenal can make a fight of it - with Ruben Amorim’s team roused by a Bruno Fernandes free-kick in first-half injury time before they produced an unexpected second-half display of ambition and drive.
Rice’s belting equaliser was Arsenal’s first Premier League goal in four and a half hours - and the England midfielder still had to pull off an expert challenge to deny Rasmus Hojlund a first goal in 20 games.
Before kick-off an estimated 5,000 protestors had marched on Old Trafford, mostly dressed in black to represent the ‘slow death’ of United under the ownership of the Glazers and Ineos.
But after a first half of further protests, the former Theatre of Dreams was roused by an impressive second-half showing from United.
It was probably the most irrelevant United-Arsenal fixture of the Premier League era, with Arsenal’s pursuit of Liverpool clearly a wild goose chase, while Amorim’s side cannot realistically be relegated nor qualify for Europe.
Sky’s pre-match montage of highlights from the Fergie-Wenger years only served to underline the modest fare they were serving up.
The 7-1 humping of PSV Eindhoven in the Champions League on Tuesday had improved the mood music for the Arsenal.
While Arteta’s team are without an authentic centre-forward, United left their one, Rasmus Hojlund, on the bench after a run of 19 appearances without a goal.
CASINO SPECIAL - BEST CASINO BONUSES FROM £10 DEPOSITS
Mikel Merino continued as Arsenal’s falsie, with Gabriel Martinelli fit enough to start on the bench after injury.
Did United need three central defenders to mark Merino? It didn’t seem so, but Amorim is fixated on his so-called 3-4-3, which looked very much like a back five here.
Merino did whistle a shot wide after Martin Odegaard had played a rapid one-two with Declan Rice.
But it was insipid, low-rent stuff all round, the home supporters only becoming animated when chants of ‘Stand up if you hate Glazers’ swept around Old Trafford like a mutinous Mexican wave.
Arsenal fans sang about having won the league here, not that many of them were old enough to remember 2002.
United’s gameplan appeared to be sit deep and if you get the ball, give it to Alejandro Garnacho because at least he can run fast.
Leandro Trossard cut inside and drilled wide of the far post but mostly it was dreadful.
Arsenal passed it around a lot, United stood there in a line of five with another line of three or four in front of them and everyone started to drift off.
But then in first-half injury time, Garnacho went on one of his runs and Trosard upended him 25 yards from goal.
For all the gulf in class between these two teams, Fernandes can still strike a dead ball and David Raya is still susceptible to being beaten by direct free-kicks.
Arsenal’s keeper didn’t seem overly concerned, his starting position was too close to the far post and his dive was superfluous as Fernandes curled his shot over the Arsenal wall.
At half-time, former Arsenal kid Ayden Heaven replaced the injured Leny Yoro to boos from the away end.
Soon, Martin Odegaard lashed a long-range shot which Andre Onana tipped over, before Rice’s volley cleared the bar from the resulting corner.
Having taken their shock lead, United actually started to commit bodies forward.
Joshua Zirkzee released Diogo Dalot down the left and he produced a lofted cross for his fellow wing-back Noussair Mazaroui to volley, Raya sticking out a foot to save from point-blank range.
Suddenly it felt like a proper game of football and United’s fans were roaring on their team rather than complaining about the ownership.
One crunching tackle from Matthijs de Ligt - who has been a rare positive in recent weeks - almost took the roof off the Stretford End.
Arteta sent on Martinelli and Myles Lewis-Skelly but United were still pouring forward and a deflected Garnacho cross located Zirkzee who improvised a back-heeled effort which Raya saved.
Lewis-Skelly, advancing from left-back was cut down by De Ligt on the edge of the box but Odegaard’s free-kick couldn’t clear the wall.
Heaven somehow got away with handling the same cross three times in his own box without conceding a penalty.
But 16 minutes from time, the equaliser arrived when Jurrien Timber darted down the right unchallenged and cut back for Rice to thrash home a shot in off the far post.
Hojlund arrived for United, while Arteta sent on yet another left-back, Kieran Tierney, shoving Lewis-Skelly into central midfield.
Merino lofted a pass to Marinelli, who shot on the gallop, forcing Onana to push wide.
Then Arsenal got in a tangle trying to play out from the back and Merino’s stray pass invited Hojlund to score - yet he hesitated and Rice executed an excellent tackle to extend the Dane’s goal drought to 20 games.
Fernandes then forced a brilliant double-save from Raya in the dying seconds.
6,000.000+downloads/Free/Bengali/Version2.3.4
777 BDT IPL 2025 Sports First Deposit Bonus
