Gunners' mark at MU's expense

Arsenal superstar Thierry Henry is euphoric after his stunning long-range goal against Manchester United at Highbury on March 28. PHOTO: AFP

Arsenal's eclipse of Manchester United as the dominant force in English football was underlined here on Sunday as Arsene Wenger's side extended their unbeaten start to the season to a record 30 matches.

Louis Saha's late equaliser ensured United came away with their dignity intact after Thierry Henry had given the Gunners the lead five minutes after the break.

But the 1-1 scoreline could hardly have been further removed from the overall pattern of a match that left no one watching in any doubt about Arsenal's belief that they are the masters now.

"This week we have given everything," said Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger whose team are also favourites to make the Champions League semi-finals after their 1-1 draw at Chelsea in midweek.

"We wanted to win this game because we are so hungry. We had chances to go 2-1 but it is a remarkable achievement to get to 30 games unbeaten.

"As a manager, you would say that the most difficult thing is to get consistency. It means a lot to get to the record, not as much as winning trophies but winning trophies is a consequence of consistency.

"I think this team is more about winning trophies than making records."

United manager Alex Ferguson admitted that the title race was as good as over for this season.

"I think they will go on and win the league now," he said.

"But we have taken a lot of credit out of the game. We played with a lot of tenacity. We have shown we have got good players and I think people have forgotten about that.

"I think we have shown we are not dead."

The London club's superiority was such that they were able to afford the luxury of squandering a series of good first-half chances before Henry finally found the net with a strike of imperious authority.

An exchange of passes with Jose Antonio Reyes nearly 30 yards out was followed by the Frenchman unleashing a shot that beat Roy Carroll for sheer pace as it swerved into the net in the middle of the United goal.

Ferguson could rightly demand to know why his defenders had not closed down Henry in such dangerous territory. But the reality was that United's back four had performed creditably well to prevent Arsenal taking the lead much earlier in the match.

Even after Saha had tapped in a cross from fellow substitute Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, Arsenal could and should have clinched all three points when Lauren fired straight at Roy Carroll's legs from eight yards.

As it was, they had to settle for a single point that leaves them seven points clear of Chelsea and, with games against Liverpool and Newcastle up next, a little bit of work still to do to clinch the title.

From a United perspective, the omens for Saturday's FA Cup semi-final between the two sides are not encouraging.

Henry's unrivalled ability to create as many goals as he finishes might have seen the Gunners take the lead inside the first ten minutes.

Twice in the space of a minute, deft passes from the Frenchman put Freddie Ljungberg into inticing shooting positions inside the United box; the Swede thwarted first by a superb Wes Brown tackle then by goalkeeper Roy Carroll's block when he might have done better to square the ball rather than shooting from a tight angle.

United responded immediately. Eric Djemba Djemba chested down a clearance on the edge of the area, flicked the ball over Sol Campbell and struck a sweet left-foot volley that drew a good save from Jens Lehmann diving low to his right.

With the exception of a laughable attempt at a dive from Gary Neville, that was to prove United's only moment of real menace in an opening period which accurately reflects the chasm that currently separates the two sides in terms of confidence.

Reyes was twice denied his first Premiership goal by Carroll and the young Spaniard received a back-handed compliment for his efforts in the form of a scything tackle from behind from Neville.

The England full-back was lucky to escape a booking and United were spared further punishment when Henry curled the free-kick into the arms of Carroll.

Edu lifted an equally inviting free-kick high into the stand but it was Henry who spurned the clearest opportunity before the break.

Ljungberg's perfectly weighted through ball from the half-way line split the United centre-backs and left Henry with only Carroll to beat from 14 yards.

Nine times out of ten, the Frenchman would have struck a first-time shot. Instead, on this occasion, he attempted to cut inside Carroll and Mikael Silvestre, letting the chance slip away with a poor first touch. Realising his error, Henry tumbled to the turf but referee Graham Poll correctly ignored the Highbury crowd's screams for a penalty.

The home supporters did not have to wait long for their idol to resume normal service. Within five minutes of the restart he had blasted in his 104th Premiership goal, equalling Ian Wright's club record.

United had a penalty appeal of their own turned down minutes after the goal when Ryan Giggs got away from Sol Campbell on the right hand side of the box. The England defender slipped and appeared to clip the Welshman's heels. Poll again waved play-on and television replays suggested any contact had come outside the box.