Arsene Wenger’s Arsenal hit what must surely be rock-bottom as they were pulverised 8-2 by Man Utd.
Arsene Wenger’s Arsenal hit what must surely be rock-bottom in what has already been a wretched summer as they were pulverised 8-2 by a brutal Manchester United performance at Old Trafford. Wayne Rooney scored a hat-trick, one from the penalty spot, Ashley Young hit two sensational long-range strikes, while Danny Welbeck, who hobbled off with an apparent hamstring injury, Nani and Ji-Sung Park also got on the score sheet.
For Wenger, who is beset by a monumental crisis caused by the sales of Cesc Fabregas and Samir Nasri, wretched performances and the unrest of fans, the afternoon was made even more painful by the first-penalty failure of Robin van Persie and Carl Jenkinson’s second-half red card.
Van Persie later gave Arsenal fans some reason to cheer, while Theo Walcott had netted in first-half stoppage time, but the goals were only a minor distraction in what was a remarkably painful afternoon for the visitors.
United’s delirious fans mocked Wenger with chants of ‘you’re getting sacked in the morning’ as Rooney walked off with the matchball, having scored his 150th Red Devils goal, then adding two more after half-time to complete his hat-trick. Yet Rooney’s efforts did not even account for half of United’s staggering tally as they scored eight for the first time since 1999.
It was Arsenal’s worst ever defeat against United and the first time they have conceded eight in a league game since 1896. For Sir Alex Ferguson, so strident in his defence of Wenger pre-match, this is of little concern.