Paul Pogba apologised for the "stupid mistake" that cost Manchester United and helped Arsenal end their 29-match winless Premier League run away to big-six sides.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's 100th match at the wheel ended in a disappointing defeat at Old Trafford, where the Red Devils started a top-flight league season with four winless matches for the first time since 1972-73.
United were a shell of the side that hammered Leipzig in the Champions League and Mikel Arteta's Arsenal punished them, with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang's spot-kick sealing a 1-0 win on Sunday.
It was the Gunners' first league win at Old Trafford since 2006 - and first at a big-six rival since January 2015 - and gifted to them by Pogba's needless penalty-box challenge on Hector Bellerin.
"We know it's a poor performance," the midfielder told the BBC. "Myself, I cannot give a foul away like this.
"I thought I would touch the ball but I didn't. (I) cost us the goal today with the penalty.
"Like I say, details. We have to do better, the team, myself, it starts with me.
"I felt like I touched him a bit, I knew I was in the box, I shouldn't have given a penalty away like that.
"Maybe I was a bit out of breath, it made me do this stupid mistake. I will learn from that, I'm not the best defensively in the box, I can work on that."
Solskjaer echoed Pogba's view after a match that looked set for a 0-0 draw, just like last weekend's clash with Chelsea.
"Paul knows if he stays on his feet and he shuffles the boy... because he was on his way out of the box, it's a soft pen to give away," he said. "Those things happen.
"I know he touched him enough to give away a pen and that went against us. Paul held his hand up and he knows he could and should have done better in that instance.
"That was the difference between the teams today. It always looked like a 0-0 to me."
Roy Keane was watching from the stands as part of his role as a Sky Sports pundit and was far from impressed by his former club's performance, saying he did not "see guys you want to be in the trenches with, guys you trust".
He added: "We spoke before the game about saying being on the front foot, being aggressive, you're the home team, and there were none of those things.
"On top of all that there was a lack of energy, enthusiasm, a real lack of quality and that really concerned me in the second half when they were getting in half decent positions and chasing the match but (there was) no quality. No composure.
Manchester United player ratings v Arsenal
"I don't see any leaders out there, right through the whole team from the experienced players.
"You are expected to roll sleeves up, that's what characters at Man United are about."
When those comments were put to Solskjaer, the United boss said: "Well, in the first half there were no tackles, no fighting, you have got to create atmosphere yourself.
"These games against Arsenal were always fierce, tackles flying.
"We didn't have the tempo or intensity for that, absolutely, and I was disappointed with the first-half performance.
"In the second half we were better. Unfortunately, they got the penalty and we just couldn't produce the response."
While United were left ruing what could have been, Arsenal were celebrating what manager Arteta believes is a key moment in their progression.
"Obviously there is many factors for us and it's not a coincidence," he said after the Gunners ended their long wait for a league win at a big-six rival.
"We have to change that (record) dramatically and very quickly if we want to be fighting to be a top team because if not we're never going to gain the consistency required at that level.
"It's great, big belief for the players and belief when we go somewhere else.
"To be fair, this season we went to Anfield and played them face-to-face, we went to the Etihad and we did not deserve to lose the game.
"We come here again and did the same, but this time we win."
Gothia Cup 2025
4,872 matches
1,942 teams
116 pitches
76 nations
26 UAE teams
15 Lebanese teams
2 Kuwaiti teams
THE CLOWN OF GAZA
Director: Abdulrahman Sabbah
Starring: Alaa Meqdad
Rating: 4/5
Israel Palestine on Swedish TV 1958-1989
Director: Goran Hugo Olsson
Rating: 5/5
MATCH INFO
Syria v Australia
2018 World Cup qualifying: Asia fourth round play-off first leg
Venue: Hang Jebat Stadium, Malayisa
Kick-off: Thursday, 4.30pm (UAE)
Watch: beIN Sports HD
* Second leg in Australia on October 10
The specs
Engine: 8.0-litre, quad-turbo 16-cylinder
Transmission: 7-speed auto
0-100kmh 2.3 seconds
0-200kmh 5.5 seconds
0-300kmh 11.6 seconds
Power: 1500hp
Torque: 1600Nm
Price: Dh13,400,000
On sale: now
What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
How do Sim card scams work?
Sim swap frauds are a form of identity theft.
They involve criminals conning mobile phone operators into issuing them with replacement Sim cards by claiming to be the victim, often pretending their phone has been lost or stolen in order to secure a new Sim.
They use the victim's personal details - obtained through criminal methods - to convince such companies of their identity.
The criminal can then access any online service that requires security codes to be sent to a user's mobile phone, such as banking services.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
Power: 579hp
Torque: 859Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh825,900
On sale: Now
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylturbo
Transmission: seven-speed DSG automatic
Power: 242bhp
Torque: 370Nm
Price: Dh136,814
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Company profile
Name: Steppi
Founders: Joe Franklin and Milos Savic
Launched: February 2020
Size: 10,000 users by the end of July and a goal of 200,000 users by the end of the year
Employees: Five
Based: Jumeirah Lakes Towers, Dubai
Financing stage: Two seed rounds – the first sourced from angel investors and the founders' personal savings
Second round raised Dh720,000 from silent investors in June this year
The Bio
Favourite vegetable: “I really like the taste of the beetroot, the potatoes and the eggplant we are producing.”
Holiday destination: “I like Paris very much, it’s a city very close to my heart.”
Book: “Das Kapital, by Karl Marx. I am not a communist, but there are a lot of lessons for the capitalist system, if you let it get out of control, and humanity.”
Musician: “I like very much Fairuz, the Lebanese singer, and the other is Umm Kulthum. Fairuz is for listening to in the morning, Umm Kulthum for the night.”
MATCH INFO
Manchester United v Manchester City, Wednesday, 11pm (UAE)
Match is on BeIN Sports
The specs: 2018 Nissan Patrol Nismo
Price: base / as tested: Dh382,000
Engine: 5.6-litre V8
Gearbox: Seven-speed automatic
Power: 428hp @ 5,800rpm
Torque: 560Nm @ 3,600rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 12.7L / 100km
RACE CARD AND SELECTIONS
5pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 1,200m
5,30pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 1,200m
6pm: The President’s Cup Listed (TB) Dh380,000 1,400m
6.30pm: The President’s Cup Group One (PA) Dh2,500,000 2,200m
7pm: Arabian Triple Crown Listed (PA) Dh230,000 1,600m
7.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 1,400m
The National selections
5pm: RB Hot Spot
5.30pm: Dahess D’Arabie
6pm: Taamol
6.30pm: Rmmas
7pm: RB Seqondtonone
7.30pm: AF Mouthirah
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.
The tours
A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.
'Shakuntala Devi'
Starring: Vidya Balan, Sanya Malhotra
Director: Anu Menon
Rating: Three out of five stars
Shubh Mangal Saavdhan
Directed by: RS Prasanna
Starring: Ayushmann Khurrana, Bhumi Pednekar
How to help
Send “thenational” to the following numbers or call the hotline on: 0502955999
2289 – Dh10
2252 – Dh 50
6025 – Dh20
6027 – Dh 100
6026 – Dh 200
Learn more about Qasr Al Hosn
In 2013, The National's History Project went beyond the walls to see what life was like living in Abu Dhabi's fabled fort:
Biog:
Age: 34
Favourite superhero: Batman
Favourite sport: anything extreme
Favourite person: Muhammad Ali
South and West: From a Notebook
Joan Didion
Fourth Estate
BUNDESLIGA FIXTURES
Friday Stuttgart v Cologne (Kick-off 10.30pm UAE)
Saturday RB Leipzig v Hertha Berlin (5.30pm)
Mainz v Borussia Monchengladbach (5.30pm)
Bayern Munich v Eintracht Frankfurt (5.30pm)
Union Berlin v SC Freiburg (5.30pm)
Borussia Dortmund v Schalke (5.30pm)
Sunday Wolfsburg v Arminia (6.30pm)
Werder Bremen v Hoffenheim (9pm)
Bayer Leverkusen v Augsburg (11.30pm)
Company%20profile
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