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#3 Manchester United's defensive problems
As mentioned earlier, Manchester United have conceded 12 goals in their last five matches. In fact, their defensive record has been poor all season. The Red Devils have kept just two clean sheets in 13 Premier League matches this term.
It's difficult to say whether Harry Maguire's return from injury is a blessing or a curse at this point. The Manchester United captain has arguably been their worst player this season, committing unpardonable errors on a consistent basis.
Victor Lindelof and Eric Bailly did a decent job against Chelsea. However, they did have plenty of help from Nemanja Matic, Scott McTominay and Fred in midfield against the Blues.
But deploying the defensive midfield trio of Matic, McTominay and Fred takes a lot out of Manchester United's attacking threat. They are likely to revert to a double midfield pivot here and as a result, United's out-of-form centre-backs could once again be easily exposed.
#2 Bruno Fernandes and Marcus Rashford's poor form
Bruno Fernandes has been Manchester United's best player ever since he joined the club in January 2020. However, he has turned in far too many underwhelming performances in recent weeks. The Portuguese international is a risktaker but most of his audacious passes have not come off in recent weeks.
He was poor against Manchester City, Watford and Chelsea. Manchester United need their most creative attacker to get back to his best. Marcus Rashford has not hit his stride since returning from injury. He has scored just one goal in his last seven appearances for Manchester United.
Due to their defensive woes, the Red Devils cannot compromise on scoring. Rashford and Fernandes' form helped them navigate tough fixtures last season but they are unfortunately playing nowhere near their best right now.
#1 Manchester United could get overrun in midfield
It remains to be seen if Cristiano Ronaldo will return to Manchester United's starting lineup against Arsenal. He was benched against Chelsea for obvious reasons. At 36 years of age, the Portuguese international has to conserve his energy for attacking moments and he simply doesn't press enough.
The rest of Manchester United's attackers are not exactly all about that graft either. They are much too reluctant to track back and help out, which in turn leads to the midfielders needing to cover too much lateral space. As a result, Fred and Scott McTominay end up getting run over in midfield.
Arsenal have hard working players in Albert Sambi Lokonga, Thomas Partey, Martin Odegaard and Emile Smith Rowe. Regardless of whether or not Ronaldo starts, there is a chance that United will get dominated in midfield. If the 36-year-old does start, things might get even worse for them during defensive transitions.
