Manchester United defeated Arsenal 2-0 at MetLife Stadium to begin their summer tour of the United States.
In the first half, Jadon Sancho, who was used as the No. 9 in Erik ten Hag’s system, and Bruno Fernandes both scored goals to celebrate being named United’s permanent captain.
Gabriel Martinelli was stopped twice by Tom Heaton, who started in goal while new addition André Onana continued to improve his fitness after joining from Inter.
Declan Rice, Jurrin Timber, and Kai Havertz were all named in a strong team selected by Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta. Mason Mount started the match for United in front of a sell-out crowd of 82,262 — the largest attendance for a football match in New Jersey.
Aaron Ramsdale and Gabriel both scored for United in the first half as a result of errors made by Arteta.
Ramsdale ought to have blocked Fernandes’ attempt from outside the box, and Gabriel made a mistake by allowing Sancho to slip past him before sprinting towards the net and shooting into the top corner.
The only drawback for Ten Hag was Amad Diallo’s injury. The Ivory Coast winger, who performed admirably when on loan at Sunderland last season, was introduced at halftime but was quickly replaced by Facundo Pellistri.
Despite the outcome, a penalty shootout followed the final whistle because both managers had decided prior to kickoff that it would be an excellent opportunity to practise penalties in front of a large audience.
Victor Lindelöf, Marcus Rashford, Christian Eriksen, Casemiro, and Diogo Dalot all scored in the shootout as United prevailed 5-3. For Arsenal, Fabio Vieira missed the game-winning kick.