United beat Arsenal to go top of the table

A solitary goal by Ji-Sung Park was enough for Manchester United to defeat title rivals Arsenal last night at Old Trafford, sending them two points clear at the top of the Premier League, with a game in hand.

The South Korean showed great creativeness when his looping header from a deflected shot from Nani went over debutant goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny. Park has now scored against Arsenal for the past three seasons.

Out of form Wayne Rooney should have doubled Manchester United’s lead, after Gael Clichy was adjudged to have handballed by the linesman. But Rooney fired his shot way over the bar.

The game itself lacked quality, with both sides making numerous mistakes throughout the 90 minutes. Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger blamed the pitch for the performance of both teams.

He told the BBC after the game: “The intensity was high but it was a very bad pitch.”

He added: "The technical quality suffered as a result and that's why you saw mistakes from both sides."

The contest was heavily hyped but the match was marred by some ferocious tackles and misplaced passing from both teams. The worst tackle came from Rio Ferdinand after his high-boot ripped the shirt of Bacary Sagna. He later apologised on Twitter.

Manchester United just about edged the midfield battle in the first half, with Anderson and Michael Carrick working well as a duo.

Arsenal’s best chance in the match fell to striker Marouane Chamakh, whose shot was well blocked by Nemanja Vidic, who once again this season was impeccable in defence. Szczesny was given his first start in an Arsenal shirt and did extremely well justifying Wenger’s decision to throw him into the deep-end.

The entire United back-four played well as a unit, keeping Arsenal at bay when they pressed for a way back into the game. But United held on for a very important win over one of their title rivals.

Ferguson heaped praise on his defence. He told Sky Sports: “[Ferdinand and Vidic] were tremendous. That gives you a great foundation, and 1-0 victories can win you the league.

He added: "If my back-four keep that foundation of not conceding any goals it gives us a really good chance."

Arsenal have not won any of their last 11 fixtures against either United or Chelsea. That statistic will have to change if Arsenal are to be fully considered as title contenders.

Sunday is another big test for the Red Devils as they head to Stamford Bridge, hoping to pile more misery on under-pressure boss Carlo Ancelotti. Meanwhile Arsenal will host Stoke at home on Saturday.

Female First - Chris Mayer