Manchester United suffered an agonising defeat to Arsenal in what was a match filled with late drama.
Erik ten Hag brought on winger Alejandro Garnacho with just over five minutes left, and it looked as though he scored the winner in the dying embers of the game, only for the goal to be ruled out for offside.
Mikel Arteta’s men then went and scored twice during injury time to secure a vital 3-1 win and maintain their unbeaten record in the Premier League heading into the international break.
How did Manchester United perform vs Arsenal?
The 3-1 defeat means United head into the break occupying 11th spot in the table following just two wins from four games, and they are already six points behind Manchester City, who top the pile.
The Red Devils only had two shots on target throughout the encounter while enjoying just 45% of possession and with the tie finely balanced at 1-1, Ten Hag would have seen an opportunity to secure all three points.
Marcus Rashford and Bruno Fernandes were their better performers during the tie, with the former scoring United’s only goal while the Portuguese midfielder made four key passes during the match.
Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough to gain anything from the match and the Dutchman will need a big response from his team against Brighton and Hove Albion when the domestic calendar resumes.
One player who should be ditched from the starting XI following that clash is Brazilian winger Antony, who once again failed to shine against the Gunners and perhaps unleashing someone else on the right wing might be a good idea.
How did Antony play vs Arsenal?
The 23-year-old was largely ineffective from the right wing as he struggled to really get involved and create any meaningful opportunity against the north Londoners.
He completed a dismal tally of just 59% of his attempted passes while failing to deliver a cross or a key pass during his 84 minutes on the pitch, indicating just how poor he was.
Indeed, the winger succeeded with just two dribbles from five attempts while failing to have a shot on target and losing possession 15 times during 84 minutes on the pitch. It's safe to say that Oleksandr Zinchenko had the better of him on Arsenal's left-hand side.
Such a lack of influence on the game was best summed up by the fact that his touch count of 49 and pass count of 16 was lower than goalkeeper Andre Onana who had 57 touches and 42 successful passes.
The £200k-per-week player has been incredibly frustrating so far this season, having failed to score or register an assist across any of his four Premier League matches and considering Ten Hag splashed out £82m for him last summer, so much more must be demanded.
He was notably criticised by broadcaster Harry Symeou following the game yesterday, along with a host of other players, saying: “Antony, anonymous again & Martial a passenger.”
In 48 matches for the Old Trafford side, Antony has scored eight times and grabbed just three assists, which works out as a £7.5m per goal contribution. This is simply not good enough and as a result, he should find himself back on the bench after the international break.
Inded, a change is surely required against Brighton in a few weeks, yet will it bring about a different result? Only time will tell.