Manchester United suffer another loss as Arsenal boost top-four hopes

Manchester United’s season lurched onto the next disappointment as their Premier League top-four hopes were all-but extinguished with defeat at Arsenal.

With Erik Ten Hag’s arrival in the summer announced earlier in the week, the Red Devils followed a sorry loss at Anfield with a 3-1 reverse against a recently rejuvenated Gunners team.

An enthralling game saw both sides make plenty of mistakes at the back but a first Arsenal goal for Nuno Tavares, a Bukayo Saka penalty and a Granit Xhaka screamer proved more than enough for the hosts, who had looked shaky after Cristiano Ronaldo’s 100th Premier League goal had the visitors back in the game.

Bruno Fernandes missed a penalty and Diogo Dalot twice hit the woodwork as United failed to make their period of superiority pay on an afternoon where Ralf Rangnick dropped United captain Harry Maguire.

The England defender has been heavily criticised for his performances this season, culminating in a bomb threat last week.

He was taken out of the spotlight at the Emirates Stadium as one of five changes from the galling 4-0 loss at Liverpool on Tuesday night.

Rangick said Ten Hag has a difficult job when he takes the reins, but the “operation of the open heart” the German believes is required to overhaul United’s fortunes will come too late to revive their Champions League chances.

With Maguire watching on from the bench it soon became clear United’s defensive ills were not the fault of one man.

Arsenal needed less than three minutes to break the deadlock, United’s defence all over the shop as the recalled pair of Raphael Varane and Alex Telles wafted a leg in failed attempts to clear a simple cross, allowing Saka a shot on goal.

David De Gea did well to palm the effort away but