Premier League: Man United 1 Arsenal 0

Ji-Sung Park sent Manchester United back to the top of the Premier League as they beat title rivals Arsenal 1-0 at Old Trafford on Monday.

Park’s sixth goal of the season, an excellent athletic header from a deflected Nani cross in the 41st minute, was enough to clinch three points against the Gunners, who went into the match in top spot.

But it was a bad day for Wayne Rooney who missed a penalty and is still looking for his first league goal since August.

Arsenal will feel they could have got something from the game but neither team really looked like champions elect.

Perhaps the enormity of the match got to the players in the early stages as both teams gave the ball away with alarming regularity and struggled to create clear-cut chances.

Nani did go close after 23 minutes when Laurent Koscielny cleared a Darren Fletcher cross into his path, but the Portuguese winger’s first-time shot fizzed wide of the post.

The breakthrough came with a slice of luck, when Nani’s cross looped up into the air off an Arsenal boot, before Ji-Sung arched his back to send a looping header over Wojciech Szczesny.

Arsenal upped their game in the second half and should have equalised when Edwin van der Sar spilled Samir Nasri’s low shot straight to Chamakh, but Nemanja Vidic somehow managed to block the Moroccan international’s effort from six yards.

But United were dangerous on the break and Szczesny had to make a fine save from Anderson before Nani wasted another opportunity after getting the better of Gael Clichy.

The hosts had an even better opportunity to make the game safe after 74 minutes when referee Howard Webb awarded a soft penalty after Clichy fell in the area and accidentally handled the ball under pressure from Nani.

Rooney, however, ballooned the spot kick embarrassingly over the bar.

That miss spurred on Arsenal, who by this time had substitutes Cesc Fabregas and Robin van Persie, both back from injury, on the pitch.

But they couldn’t find an equaliser and needed Szczesny to make an excellent save to keep out Rooney’s late chip.