3 key points from Manchester United's draw with Arsenal

As predicted earlier, Manchester United was not going to lose to fierce rivals Arsenal in their home territory. It would have been an added a low blow to an already injured side if Jose Mourinho's men had lost, while Arsenal, on the other hand, are now on the cusp of something special.

The Gunners are unbeaten in 20 matches across all competitions. The last time this happened, they reigned supreme in 'the Invincibles' era. That notwithstanding, last night's match had the proper ingredients of a cracker that this fixture has traditionally been.

A draw would serve neither team's interests in terms of their immediate targets. For Arsenal, it would be to keep up with the top two Premier League high flyers. For United, it was to simply claw their way back to the top four, a target that looks harder by the day. Watching United against Arsenal was reminiscent of the good old Ferguson-Wenger battles.

There were several unexpected moments with referees on the spot. These were some notable moments from the game.

#3 Injuries

There were several injuries in this match.

Like any classic Manchester United-Arsenal match, it was a highly physical match. Combine this with a slippery surface and the result is injuries. The Gunners were forced into two injury-related changes. Their skipper on the day Aaron Ramsey, had to be replaced while Rob Holding was also injured and replaced.

This left Unai Emery with one wild card left which proved instrumental. Lucas Torreira also had a few problems in this match. Shkodran Mustafi appeared to have some difficulties barely a minute after Arsenal had made their final change but was able to soldier on.

At the other end, Anthony Martial overcommitted when tracking back and as a result, pulled a muscle in the second half. He was one of United's potent players up to that point. All in all, it was a feisty affair with lots of tackles in different areas of the pitch as expected in a fixture like this.

#2 Officiating

A game is only as good as its officiating. Referee Andre Marriner was trigger happy as he brandished five yellow cards inside a six-minute spell of the first half. Any kind of challenge seemed to attract a yellow card. At the end of the first half, the much dreaded red card from a second booking looked inevitable given how fast these cards were dished out.

A quick look at the replays showed Ander Herrera was marginally offside as he crossed the ball for United's equaliser in the first half. The linesman did not spot that. Alexandre Lacazette was brought down as he poked home the ball when Arsenal retook the lead.

There were two players around him. Who between Eric Bailly and Marcos Rojo would have been sent off had it not gone in?

#1 Bizarre goals

Lingard scored within 15 seconds of the restart after Arsenal took the lead.

One would fancy goals in this match given how both teams have had defensive weaknesses. Arsenal have been playing beautiful football and it was the general expectation that a goal would come from team play. David de Gea, considered one of the best goalkeepers in the world, conceded from a poor attempt at a save

Mustafi's downward header bounced off the ground and into his path. This was to be a routine save but he somehow fumbled the ball. Herrera's clearance proved futile as the goal line technology showed the ball had already crossed the line.

Lacazette tumbled with two United defenders as the ball somehow found its way into the net after deceiving de Gea. 15 seconds after the restart, bizarre defending in the Arsenal box allowed Jesse Lingard to creep in and score an instant equaliser. It the end, it was a fair result with United lucky not to concede further.