Win is vital for Gunners but champions United won't ease off
Arsenal are Premier League's form team, but they have failed to compete with the elite
Arsenal's home clash with Manchester United is more vital for the hosts than the visitors, but the prospect of a record points total in the English Premier League may keep the champions interested enough to slow down the Gunners' charge towards a Champions League place.
Arsenal are the form team in the league with nine wins and only one defeat from their last 12 games, but a notable factor is that all the dropped points have come in their only games in that period against top-seven teams - home draws with Liverpool (2-2) and Everton (0-0) and a 2-1 away defeat at Tottenham.
The two league games immediately preceding that 12-match run were defeats by Manchester City (2-0 at home) and Chelsea (2-1 away), which leaves plenty of doubt about Arsenal's ability to compete with the other elite teams.
This season, Arsenal have won only two out of 11 against top-seven teams, with five defeats, and one of those victories - the 5-2 home win over Tottenham - was influenced by the early sending-off of Emmanuel Adebayor after he had put Tottenham 1-0 in front.
There is also an argument that Arsenal have choked in crunch home games - perhaps less so when beaten 3-1 by Bayern Munich in the Champions League than when they were knocked out of the FA Cup four days earlier by Championship side Blackburn - and backers tomorrow will be putting a measure of faith in United failing to treat this match with the same importance now that the title is in the bag.
United, however, need a perfect end to the season if they are to reach a record 96 points and that is likely to appeal to Sir Alex Ferguson as much as keeping Arsenal under United's heel. Since Arsenal won both Premier League meetings between the sides in the 2006-07 season, the balance of power has shifted firmly to Ferguson's side, who have won 11 and lost just two of the last 15 in all competitions.