This past Sunday, the 24th day of the English Premier League, Manchester United beat Arsenal 3-1. United (53) managed to add three more points and is now just one point behind Chelsea (54), who is the current leader of the league.

During their visit to the Emirates, United played with superiority and dedicated themselves to a powerful counterattack during the game. Their show of force showed the cracks in Arsenal’s weak defense.

Manchester entered the game knowing that playing as the visiting team would require that the players double their efforts. They were aware that the Gunners would spend their time trying to control the ball and apply effective attack.

However, United ruined Arsenal’s chances. The home team was left trying desperately to defend itself, but the efforts weren’t enough against England’s reigning champions.

From the first minute, Manchester made it clear to its rivals that victory would not be easy, and that United was going for a crushing effort in this crucial match. They advanced quickly and pressured Arsenal with outstanding plays. Arsenal was quickly unbalanced; the team lost command of its game and played without coordination.

The first goal of the game stemmed from a play in which Manuel Almunia, Arsenal’s goalkeeper, deflected a ball from Nani into his own goal. The own-goal occurred at minute 33.

Arsenal responded by trying to pressure Manchester, but the players committed far too many tactical errors. Alex Ferguson’s players quickly took advantage, and the offensive moved further and further into their rivals’ area.

Only five minutes after the first embarrassing goal, Nani helped to add another. He sent a nice pass to teammate Wayne Rooney, who moved forward slightly and, with a powerful shot, sent the ball deep into the opponent’s goal.

The first half ended with United ahead on the scoreboard 2-0, and the host team easily overshadowed.

Manchester continued to control the game in the second half. Arsenal did everything it could to try to level its opponents, but anxiety and a lack of focus rendered the team unable to do so.

Immediately after halftime, at minute 52, Park ji-Sung scored the goal that made it 3-0. With the players’ motivation near-crushed, Arsenal made a great effort defending itself from its rivals, who weren’t yet done with the game.

Finally, at minute 80, Arsenal enjoyed some relief. Belgian defender Thomas Vermaelen scored the first goal for his team. However, the goal was also the last. Arsenal lost the game, 3-1, moving further back from the top spots and watching its chances of obtaining the title decrease.

Ferguson, meanwhile, stressed Manchester’s strong performance. The head coach said his players were in great shape and were determined to take the English Premier league crown for the fourth year in a row.