Arsenal 3 Man Utd 1: Woeful Red Devils all-but out of Champions League race as Gunners leapfrog Spurs after heated clash

BRUNO FERNANDES did his best to get a free pass out of crisis club Manchester United with a horror display that summed up his club's woes.

The Portuguese midfielder produced the kind of performance that sums up the problems at Old Trafford and which will have been noted by incoming boss Erik ten Hag.

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Fernandes missed a penalty, gave the ball away for Arsenal's third goal, was lucky to escape with a booking for a dreadful tackle and was eventually put out of his misery by being subbed with seven minutes to go.

And defeat dealt Man United's hopes of a top four finish a huge blow as they fall further and further behind as a dismal season drifts towards an undignified end.

Arsenal were ahead within three minutes after slack defending by Raphael Varane and Alex Telles.

The Gunners were two up after just over half an hour when Bukayo Saka scored his second penalty in as many games.

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Cristiano Ronaldo pulled one back in the first half on his return to action following the death of his baby son.

But any hopes of a Man United comeback disappeared when Fernandes wasted a golden opportunity to equalise from the spot on 55 minutes.

Fernandes opted for a showy shuffle and shimmy run up before hitting a lame spot kick that dribbled wide after hitting the post.

He then capped the visitors' miserable day by losing the ball on the edge of his own box for Arsenal midfielder Granit Xhaka to smash home a 30 yard shot.

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Fernandes could easily have been sent off for a late challenge on Arsenal's Nuno Tavares as he lost the plot.

United's interim boss Ralf Rangnick was forced to take him off for the sake of his team in the 83rd minute.

Rangnick is moving upstairs in the summer and Dutchman Ten Hag is coming in with a mission to revive Manchester United after yet another abject campaign and needing "open heart surgery" as he claimed.

This woeful display follows a 4-0 thrashing at Liverpool on Tuesday.

Captain Harry Maguire was also left on the bench after a crazed fan made bomb threats against the defender.

Arsenal are on the way back after beating Chelsea 4-2 in midweek to record a second big win in four days and give their Champions League hopes a huge boost.

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