Manchester United dealt a blow to Arsenal’s title bid in English soccer’s Premier League, with Matheus Cunha’s late stamina leading to a 3-2 victory over the leaders.
Lisandro Martinez’s own goal put Arsenal ahead at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday, but Brian Mbeumo equalized before half-time.
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United took the lead at the end of the first half with a great strike from Patrick Dorg, but Mikel Merino’s equalizer late on seemed to have given Arsenal a point.
In a dramatic finish, Brazilian forward Cunha scored the winner with an eye-catching drive three minutes into full-time.
It was Arsenal’s first loss in 13 competitive games since losing to Aston Villa in December. The Gunners lost at home for the first time in 18 competitive games since losing to Bournemouth in May.
The Gunners are currently just four points ahead of second-placed Manchester City and third-placed Aston Villa, with both teams closing the gap this weekend with wins over Wolves and Newcastle respectively.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta hasn’t lifted a trophy since the FA Cup in 2020, and Arsenal, who haven’t won a title in 22 years, will have their mettle tested in the coming weeks after losing a huge lead to the leaders in their last title race.
It was United’s first win at the Emirates Stadium since December 2017, continuing an impressive start to Michael Carrick’s interim reign.
Former Middlesbrough manager Carrick, who was hired on a temporary basis to replace the sacked Ruben Amorim, started his tenure with a surprise 2-0 win over Manchester City last weekend.
After a tumultuous period under Amorim, he has already lifted United into fourth place with wins over the top two teams.
Arsenal’s relentless early pressure paid off in the 29th minute.
It was a shocking goal for United, starting with Dorg’s failure to head a cross from Pierro Hincapie.
Bukayo Saka pounced to clip a cross for Martin Odegaard and the Arsenal captain missed his shot, but Martinez quickly cleared under pressure from Julian Timber and the ball bounced off the heel of a United defender.
Arsenal have not allowed a shot on target in their last two league games.
But if Arsenal’s opening goal was a great one for United, the Gunners returned the favor with yet another careless blunder in the 37th minute.
Mbeumo latched onto Martin Zvimendi’s painfully under-hit backpass and fired a shot past Arsenal keeper David Raya.
Mbeumo’s ninth goal in all competitions since joining from Brentford continued the Cameroon international forward’s gradual development in his first season at United.
Arsenal lost all momentum and Carrick’s side made the most of it five minutes after the interval.
Bruno Fernandes singled out Dorg, who took a touch and darted into the top corner from 20 yards to go.
Arsenal appealed for handball against Dorg, but the goal was allowed by VAR amid an uneasy silence at the Emirates Stadium.
The 21-year-old’s second goal in consecutive games proved Carrick’s decision to move from a defensive to an attacking role was correct.
To their credit, Arsenal refused to surrender and equalized in the 84th minute.
It was Arsenal’s set piece that did the damage again. Lamence failed to catch Saka’s corner kick and Merino scored from close range.
However, the blow came in the 87th minute for Arsenal. Fernandes and Koby Mainu teed up Cunha and fired a stunning shot past Raya from 25 meters (27 yards).
Cunha said it was the type of match he dreamed of playing for United.
“This is the type of game we see on TV. It’s one of my best moments here,” he told Premier League Productions.
“It means everything. This is the type of thing I wanted to do when I got here.”
Arsenal captain Odegaard lamented some mistakes that derailed his team’s form.
“It’s never been easy. We know every game in this league is a big challenge,” he told Sky Sports.
“Now is the time to work harder than ever. We are still at the top of the league so we have to keep moving forward and bounce back quickly.”
Earlier on Sunday, a sweet strike from Emi Buendia gave Aston Villa a 2-0 win over Newcastle in a hard-fought Premier League clash to keep them in contention for the top two.
A sumptuous finish from the Argentine and a late header from Ollie Watkins secured victory at St James’ Park. This will be the first time on Tyneside since 2005.
Elsewhere, Estevao scored the opening goal and added an assist as fourth-placed Chelsea beat 10-a-side Crystal Palace 3-1, securing Liam Rosenior’s first away win in the Premier League.
Estevao, 18, took advantage of an Eagles mistake and broke the deadlock in the 34th minute. The young Brazilian then teed up Joao Pedro after the restart.
Enzo Fernandes added another goal from the penalty spot shortly after the end, and Adam Wharton was shown a second yellow card, leaving Palace with 10 men.
Chris Richards got the nod in the 88th minute to give the Eagles the win. The Eagles’ winning streak extended to 11 games across all competitions.
In West London, Nottingham Forest allayed relegation fears with a surprise 2-0 win over Brentford, thanks to goals from Igor Jesus and Taiwo Awoniyi.
