Arsenal beat Manchester United 1-0 on Sunday afternoon to begin the new Premier League campaign with a victory.
Mikel Arteta’s season is off and running after Arsenal defeated Manchester United 1-0 at Old Trafford on Sunday.
Riccardo Calafiori was the match-winner, heading home from close range as United struggled to deal with a classic Nicolas Jover set piece.
United threatened throughout, but Arsenal stood firm to claim all three points and start the season with a victory on the board.
Viktor Gyokeres endured a difficult competitive debut for Arsenal, but the Gunners battled through to claim all three points.
Photo by Visionhaus/Getty ImagesMikel Arteta on Christian Norgaard
Arsenal fans were able to watch three signings in action as the Gunners secured victory at Old Trafford.
Gyokeres wasn’t quite at his best, but Martin Zubmendi impressed for Arsenal, and Noni Madueke came off the bench.
Arsenal also snapped up Christian Norgaard over the summer, luring the Dane away from Brentford.
Norgaard was signed as a replacement for Jorginho as Arsenal’s experienced head to offer midfield depth.
The Dane wasn’t even on the bench against United, though, and boss Mikel Arteta has explained why.
Speaking on Arsenal’s official website, Arteta has admitted that Norgaard has suffered a ‘little issue’ which forced him to miss the game.
Arteta stated that Arsenal’s medical staff are looking into the injury, and he simply wasn’t able to feature against United.
“He had a little issue the medical staff will address. He wasn’t able to play today,” said Arteta.
Christian Norgaard didn’t even train ahead of Manchester United clash
Football London add that Norgaard didn’t even train in the week leading up to Arsenal’s trip to Manchester, so his absence was seemingly expected within the Emirates Stadium.
The nature of Norgaard’s injury is still unclear, but Arsenal will seek more clarity ahead of next weekend’s clash with Leeds United.
No midweek fixture at this early stage in the season at least takes the pressure off, but Arsenal will want Norgaard back sooner rather than later.
A battle-hardened midfielder at Premier League level, Norgaard could be very handy for the away trip to Liverpool at the end of August.
Arteta will hope for positive news in the coming days, with Norgaard earmarked for an important role in the Arsenal squad, even if he isn’t nailed on as a first-choice player in the Gunners’ engine room.