It was a wonderfully eclectic debut for Antony, a poor game from Mikel Arteta and proof that Manchester United will probably be about alright.
1) That’s two Arsenal Invincible runs Manchester United have ended now. The excitement at discovering which player lobbed Italian goods at Erik ten Hag in the tunnel is palpable. Rob Holding has to be the early favourite.
2) It feels like a trick of the mind to think Manchester United hit absolute rock bottom just over three weeks ago. In the 22 days that have passed since the 4-0 thrashing by Brentford, the mood has been completely transformed.
You can already imagine the newspaper broadsheet or Athletic 5,000-word feature headline about the resurrection of Manchester United: how Ten Hag won the squad around with that 13.8km run; when the owners realised they had to back him with a bigger budget than planned; how Lisandro Martinez shattered the stigma of tiny centre-halves; and anecdotes about Harry Maguire and Cristiano Ronaldo becoming the greatest of friends after sharing a bench together so often.
This really has been a stunning turnaround achieved in little over three weeks. Credit must go to Ten Hag, the players and the board for their part in it, because it would have been easier to spiral further from that defeat than it has been to drag themselves back.
3) After the understandable jerk of knees which followed those chastening losses to Brighton and Brentford, there is a danger in going too far the other way as a reaction to four straight wins.
Manchester United have not been fixed. They look more resilient in defence and effective in attack. They are finally being coached to a high standard – and the players are embracing the guidance. They have a manager able to make bold, independent decisions to which they insist on being held accountable. The atmosphere is perceptibly more positive.
But as with any rebuild, these foundations are volatile. Crystal Palace and Leeds provide different challenges in the next fortnight before a trip to Manchester City. Manchester United’s reaction to the inevitable next setback will be more indicative than any of these victories.
Does the squad’s absolute faith in Ten Hag’s methods only extend as long as this winning run or are those ideals embedded enough to sustain disappointment, particularly in a team known to have fluctuating confidence levels?
4) The positive for Arsenal is that Mikel Arteta feels his players are at that stage: they can roll…
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