Corner kings Arsenal beat Man Utd to close gap on Liverpool

AFP | London

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Arsenal worked their setpiece magic to beat Manchester United 2-0 on Wednesday, ending Ruben Amorim’s unbeaten start to life in the Old Trafford hotseat and closing the gap on Premier League leaders Liverpool.

United frustrated the home side at the Emirates in a cagey first half but Jurrien Timber broke the deadlock from a corner after the break and William Saliba repeated the feat.

The win leaves Arsenal in third place in the Premier League, behind Chelsea on goal difference and seven points adrift of leaders Liverpool, who were held to a 3-3 draw at Newcastle.

“A special day, 500 games in this stadium. We scored two set pieces, but we could’ve scored from open play many more,” Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta told the BBC.

“We lost two massive players for us in our backline but the team are still responding.

“The game opened up a little bit and we looked a real threat. Very pleased. It’s a joy to play in this stadium with that energy, it’s something incredible.”

Amorim made six changes from the team that brushed Everton aside 4-0 at the weekend, dropping in-form Amad Diallo and Marcus Rashford from his starting line-up.

Gabriel was a significant absence from Arsenal’s defence, joining Ben White and Riccardo Calafiori on the injury list.

Amorim travelled to London with two wins and a draw from his first three matches in all competitions, keenly aware that Arsenal would be his biggest test yet.

Arteta’s men should have been ahead early when Thomas Partey skewed his header wide from a corner -- giving United a warning.

Gabriel Martinelli flashed just wide from another corner midway through the first half as Arsenal continued to look dangerous from set pieces.

United were content to bide their time when they had the ball but they looked blunt in attack.

The game picked up tempo at the start of the second half, with Diallo replacing Tyrell Malacia for United.