Man United 2 Arsenal 1

So frustrated, in fact, he was sent to the stands after kicking a water bottle.

Arsene Wenger was frustrated after Arsenal's injury-time effort was ruled out for offside.

Dimitar Berbatov came on after 85 minutes.

The Old Trafford crowd could barely contain their excitement.

And it was Rooney who equalised for United from the penalty spot

After a quiet first half, Wayne Rooney sparked into life in the second period.

Darren Fletcher also did his fair share of work in the heart of midfield.

Ryan Giggs saw plenty of the ball against the Gunners.

The only way to stop Nani on this occasion was to upend the Portuguese winger.

Patrice Evra looked dangerous all afternoon down the left flank.


The Russian was more than a little pleased with his strike.


Andrey Arshavin gave Arsenal the lead on 40 minutes.


Rooney and Carrick celebrate the goals

United came from a goal down to beat Arsenal 2-1 at Old Trafford on Saturday and keep pace with league leaders Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur.

The victory – gained via a Wayne Rooney penalty and an Abou Diaby own goal – means Sir Alex’s men sit three points behind the London clubs in third place.

Rooney’s goal was his fourth in as many league games this season and restored parity after Andrey Arshavin had earlier given the Gunners the lead with a ferocious strike from distance. But United rallied, equalised and then took the lead just five minutes later when Diaby headed into his own net.

The Reds began the match with only seven of the 11 that started in last Saturday’s 5-0 win at Wigan. At the back, John O’Shea and Wes Brown came in for Gary Neville and Jonny Evans, while Sir Alex’s three-man midfield – Darren Fletcher, Ryan Giggs and Michael Carrick – meant Paul Scholes had to settle for a spot on the bench. Wayne Rooney spearheaded the Reds’ attack, with Antonio Valencia and Nani flanking the Englishman.

And after an early spell of Arsenal possession, it was Rooney who fashioned United’s first chance, chipping cleverly over the Gunners’ defence to find Fletcher inside the area. The ball didn’t quite drop for the Scot, however, and his volley flashed over the bar.

Sir Alex's men soon settled and Valencia and Nani saw plenty of the ball. Indeed, it was from wide areas United looked most threatening, especially down Arsenal’s right side. Alexandre Song must have realised the same thing and did his best to curtail Valencia’s involvement with a crude challenge on 23 minutes before Arsenal almost took the lead through Robin van Persie and then Arshavin.

From certain angles it looked like Rooney had put the Reds in front on 33 minutes but his free-kick, which left Arsenal goalkeeper Manuel Almunia rooted to the spot, actually curled agonisingly wide of the right-hand post. Chances from open play were few and far between, with both teams uncharacteristically misplacing passes in midfield.

Hardly a classic encounter, then, although the game did spark into life on 40 minutes when Arshavin found space 25 yards from goal, looked up and lashed a blistering right-footed shot goalwards. Foster got both hands to the ball but the pace of the strike proved too much and the Gunners rocketed into the lead.

Nemanja Vidic wasted a chance to equalise on the stroke of half-time when he scuffed an effort from close range, so it was Arsene Wenger who was the happier manager as the teams trotted down the tunnel at the break.

Sir Alex can’t have been too displeased with the performance, as United – like Arsenal – emerged for the second period with the same starting XI. Things almost got worse for the Reds, though – only Foster’s sharp reflexes prevented van Persie from doubling the visitors' advantage. It could have so easily been 2-0, and again a minute later when Emmanuel Eboue’s poor first touch let him down at the far post.

Sloppy passing continued to plague the Reds… until Ryan Giggs threaded an inviting pass into the penalty area from just inside the Arsenal half. Rooney reached the ball slightly ahead of Gunners goalkeeper Almunia, whose momentum brought down the England striker for a penalty. The Reds’ no.10 – after declining the chance to score from the spot at Burnley earlier this season – stepped up himself to slot home calmly from 12 yards and silence the visitors’ hitherto vocal support.

Sensationally, United were ahead five minutes later, and in the most bizarre fashion. A wide free-kick from Ryan Giggs appeared to pose no danger as it arrived into the area, yet Abou Diaby inexplicably headed past Almunia and into his own net. It was as welcome a gift as Old Trafford has seen for some time, especially given how close Arsenal came to extending their lead just after the break. But you have to take your chances in football and sometimes, as United discovered today, a little bit of luck can make all the difference.

The Gunners rarely threatened after Diaby’s clanger, while United could have gone further ahead in the closing minutes through Dimitar Berbatov and Nani.The Bulgarian will no doubt claim he was the unlucky victim of an untimely bobble. Nani, however, blazed over from eight yards after testing Almunia with a strong initial shot.

There was a late scare for United fans in the sixth minute of injury time when Robin van Persie found the net but the referee's assistant correctly ruled William Gallas had been offside in the build-up. The decision infuriated Arsene Wenger, who was subsequently sent to the stands for his protests. His comical attempts to leave the dugout was the icing on the cake for United fans, who left the ground with smiles as big as the Stretford End.

曼联在落后一球的情况下，最终在老特拉福德以2比1击败阿森纳，保持向榜首的切尔西以及热刺施压。

鲁尼在下半场的点球以及迪亚比的古怪乌龙球，帮助曼联得到3分，目前仅落后榜首的两支伦敦球队，只有3分的差距，排在积分榜的第三位。

在阿尔沙文为阿森纳先开纪录以后，鲁尼打进个人在赛季中的第五个进球，5分钟后，迪亚比头球把皮球顶进自家大门，曼联完成反超。

与上周末以5比0击败维冈的比赛相比，只有7人保留先发位置，在后防线上，奥谢和布朗取代内维尔和埃文斯，在三人中场上，弗莱彻，吉格斯和卡里克获得先发，斯科尔斯坐在替补席上，鲁尼担当单前锋，瓦伦西亚和纳尼分居两个边路。

阿森纳在比赛早段获得较多控球权，不过第一次射门出现在鲁尼身上，他的凌空射门高出，在上半场中段，曼联慢慢找到状态，纳尼有较多控球机会，曼联的进攻也更具威胁。

宋漂亮地阻挡瓦伦西亚的进攻，第23分钟，阿森纳取得领先，先是范佩西的射门被埃弗拉挡出，随后他开出角球，让曼联门前出现混乱，阿尔沙文最终在离门12码处劲射破门。

第33分钟，鲁尼主罚任意球直接射门偏出，由于拼抢积极，两队在中场线都有不少传球失误的镜头，半场结束前，维迪奇错过一次进球机会，阿森纳带着一球领先的优势步入更衣室。

不过弗格森也不会对球队的表现，感到特别不满意，在下半场，曼联还是保留同样的宪法阵容，福斯特凭借敏捷的反应，用脚挡出范佩西在小禁区里射出的必进球，这也是比赛最关键的转折点。
吉格斯在前场直传，鲁尼比出击的阿森纳门将埃蒙尼亚早一步碰到皮球，随后被扑倒，主裁判吹罚点球，鲁尼轻松罚中。

5分钟后，曼联更是成功反超比分，吉格斯开出任意球，迪亚比在毫无压力的情况下，把皮球顶进自家大门，这无疑是对主人家的最佳见面礼。

迪亚比在连续突破三名曼联球员后，险些可以将功补过，不过他射出的皮球，仅仅滑门而过。曼联用贝尔巴托夫换下纳尼，贝尔巴托夫一次接应打门，将皮球打飞。

最后时刻，范佩西打进一球，让曼联球迷惊出一身冷汗，不过幸好加拉斯此前已经越位为例，因此这个进球被吹无效，曼联最终在主场以2比1，取得宝贵3分。