After weeks of frustration and bad results, these first 45 minutes at Old Traffoc are like a breath of fresh air. With Manchester United happy to sit back hoping to get the one point which would see them crowned Champions, the Arsenal side is instead full of life, clicking well together and have also created some important moves.

However, despite being a lively encounter, there’s very little to report in terms of goal opportunities, which incidentally, almost all came from the Arsenal side. In the 13th minute, Arshavin does well to pick van Persie in the penalty area but the Dutchman fails to hit the target from close range.

The home side’s reply to that saw Wayne Rooney doing well to meet Carrick’s cross but his effort is just wide. With Manchester United on the back foot and failing to turn the momentum on their side, we kept on coming forward but rarely troubled their keeper.

Again, it’s nice to see the lads reacting the way they did after a number of disappointing weeks. Robin up there alone, unfortunately, failed to impress despite being put in a position to score, especially with that header in the first quarter. I believe someone like Bendtner would suit this type of formation better. Arshavin did well on the left but Nasri has been pretty anonymous so far on the right so maybe Wenger will opt for Theo.

On a final note, it’s somehow early to judge Song at the back alongside Toure. We didn’t concede goals, granted, but it seems as if Manchester United can score whenever they are on the attack, especially when creating from the wings where Gibbs and Sagna have been caught on the back foot a number of times.

At half time, it’s nil-nil.