Ice-cool Ronaldo slots home goal no. 38 as United edge towards title

Manchester United 2-1 Arsenal

Cristiano Ronaldo took his tally for the season to 38 with a penalty as Manchester United came from behind to beat Arsenal and take a major step towards retaining their title.

In what was an entertaining match at Old Trafford, the champions deservedly claimed what could prove a crucial win, with United now six points ahead of Chelsea at the top of the Premiership.

Arsenal showed no signs of lacking in confidence following their midweek exit from the Champions League. The Gunners were the better side in a first half in which the best opportunities fell to each sides’ respective strikers.

Emmanuel Adebayor went close on a couple of occasions for Arsenal, with an excellent block from Rio Ferdinand and a weak finish from the Togo hitman meaning the Gunners had little to show for their impressive performance in the first half.

At the other end, Patrice Evra fed Ronaldo down the left and the Portuguese picked out Wayne Rooney, who diverted the ball goalwards only for Jens Lehman to make a save. The German then denied Rooney again when the England forward raced through on goal, with Lehman sticking out a leg to deflect the ball wide.

The second half was only two minutes old when Arsenal snatched the lead, although it was a controversial goal from Adebayor. Robin van Persie crossed from the left and Adebayor took advantage of confusion in the United defence to bundle in from close range, with replays showing that he clearly used his hand to make contact with the ball.

Ronaldo composure

Ferdinand almost put through his own net a minute later, but almost instantly United were given the chance to level when William Gallas handled inside the area. Ronaldo was forced to take the penalty twice after encroachment, but the 23-year-old showed great composure to beat Lehman with a perfectly placed shot into the bottom corner.

Despite drawing level, United manager Alex Ferguson made a double change immediately, bringing on Anderson and Carlos Tevez, and the champions were the better side for the remainder of the game. Tevez almost marked his introduction with a goal, but his twenty-metre shot flew past the post, while Wes Brown gave the hosts a scare when he forced van der Sar into a save when inadvertently diverting the ball towards his own goal.

The winning goal came from a free-kick, won by Evra after Rooney had again been foiled by Lehman. Owen Hargreaves, who scored from a similar position against Fulham earlier this season, curled a perfect shot over the Arsenal wall and into the bottom corner.

Knowing that a defeat would spell the end of their title hopes, Arsenal threw men forward in the latter stages, but United held firm and secured another precious three points in their title quest. The Red Devils will now watch on as Chelsea play twice before the weekend, with a home match against Wigan followed by Thursday’s tough looking trip to Goodison Park and Everton.

Man Utd:
Van der Sar, Brown, Ferdinand, Pique, Evra, Ronaldo, Carrick, Hargreaves (Giggs 89), Scholes (Anderson 55), Park (Tevez 55), Rooney
Yellow Cards: Brown, Carrick

Arsenal:
Lehmann, Toure (Hoyte 85), Gallas, Song Billong, Clichy, Eboue (Walcott 61), Fabregas, Silva, Hleb, Van Persie (Bendtner 76), Adebayor
Yellow Cards: Van Persie, Gallas, Lehmann, Adebayor, Hoyte

Goals:
[0-1] Adebadoy, 48
[1-1] Ronaldo, 54 (pen)
[2-1] Hargreaves, 72