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The English Premier League season has reached Matchday 28 this weekend, and the biggest game on the slate features Arsenal traveling to Old Trafford for a matchup with Manchester United. It’s been a tale of two cities when looking at these team’s form this year, but the Red Devils will always want to take something from the Gunners, and anything but 3 points this Sunday would more or less end Arsenal’s hopes of a Premier League title.
We’ve recapped both teams’ seasons thus far and have made a pick for this clash, so let’s dive into our Arsenal @ Manchester United EPL preview.
Arsenal enters Sunday’s match with 54 points through 27 games this season, posting 15 wins, 9 draws and 3 losses. Although they’ve allowed just 23 goals this season (1st in the EPL), they’ve struggled to score, as they have found the back of the net just 51 times (5th in the EPL). For context, they sit 13 points behind the leaders, Liverpool, with a game in hand, but the Reds have scored 66 goals this year. It’s safe to say that Arsenal’s biggest issue has been their lack of scoring.
Some of this can be due to injuries, as their best winger, Bukayo Saka, has played in just 16 games this season, but they’ve also lacked a true striker. Kai Havertz and Gabriel Jesus are the main forwards for Arsenal, but they’ve combined for just 12 goals in 38 matches, and both players suffered season-ending injuries in 2025. They’ve turned to Mikel Merino up top in recent games, but the Spanish international isn’t an out-and-out attacker and is a better fit in the midfield. Overall, their lack of finishing will likely cause them to come up short in the title race, but that doesn’t mean they can’t take care of business at Old Trafford.
Manchester United is having a season to forget, as the hosts have just 33 points through 27 games. They have 9 wins, 6 draws and 12 defeats and have scored just 33 goals while conceding 39. The season began with manager Erik ten Hag in charge, but the Dutch coach was dismissed after recording just 11 points through 9 matches (3-2-4). The Red Devils had a decent spell under interim manager Ruud van Nistelrooy, as they drew Chelsea 1-1 and defeated Leicester City 3-0. However, things didn’t continue after the hiring of Ruben Amorim.
The 40-year-old Portuguese coach was fantastic in his time managing Sporting CP, as they were a perfect 11-0-0 in Liga Portugal, but he hasn’t been able to bring this success to Manchester. The Red Devils have just 18 points in 16 games (5-3-8) since Amorim took over, and their only notable victories were a 2-1 road win at Manchester City and a 1-0 victory at Fulham. When playing at Old Trafford, the Red Devils have won just four of their nine games, but three of those wins came against the teams currently in the relegation zone (Leicester City, Southampton and Ipswich Town). It’s safe to say that Manchester United isn’t expected to win this Sunday, but leaving Old Trafford with a point would give the squad a big morale boost.
Sunday’s match between Arsenal and Manchester United is the 73rd meeting between the teams and the 60th time they’ve faced off in the Premier League. Manchester United currently leads the rivalry, as they have 23 wins to Arsenal’s 21, while the game has finished in a draw 15 times. However, the Red Devils haven’t defeated the Gunners in the EPL since 2022, as Arsenal has won four straight meetings, outscoring Man U 9-3 in the process. However, the Red Devils eliminated the Gunners from the FA Cup this past January with penalty kicks, so there’s an element of revenge for Sunday’s contest.
I anticipate more of the same this Sunday, but it will be interesting to see the Arsenal starting XI. They dismantled PSV Eindhoven 7-1 in the Champions League this past Tuesday, while Manchester United drew 1-1 at Real Sociedad in the Europa League on Thursday. This gives the Gunners a significant rest advantage, so I expect a similar lineup to what they rolled out midweek.
The hosts have allowed 2+ goals in four of their last five games at Old Trafford, and I don’t see that changing against Arsenal. However, it’s hard to land on one player finding the back of the net for the visitors, as they had seven different players score against PSV. Therefore, I’ll back Ethan Nwaneri to record 1+ shot on target, as the 17-year-old recorded 2 shots on target against PSV, scoring once, and has 17 shots over the last 7 games, 7 of which were on net.
