United went ahead four minutes before halftime when South Korean midfielder Park twisted to get his head on a Nani cross from the right which had taken a slight deflection off Arsenal defender Gael Clichy.

They squandered the chance to go 2-0 up when Wayne Rooney fired a penalty over the bar with just over a quarter of an hour left after Clichy had handled in the area at Old Trafford.

The hosts, unbeaten in the league this season and with the best home record, were taking on the team with the best away form but Arsenal came up short in a performance, lacking sparkle and they now sit second on 32 points, two behind United.

Watched by some of the Chilean miners who were rescued in October after being trapped for more than two months underground, a scrappy encounter will have tested the patience of even those miners.

It also did little to endorse either side’s title credentials as they struggled to keep possession when they got near the box and Arsenal’s usually devastating combination of Marouane Chamakh and Samir Nasri looked disjointed.

United were keen to test young Arsenal goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny who was making his first Premier League and standing in for Polish compatriot Lukasz Fabianski.

Portugal winger Nani shot straight into the 20-year-old’s arms and Rooney did the same a couple of minutes later but the keeper stood strong, although his distribution was poor.

United manager Alex Ferguson had remarked before the game that Arsenal had become a more physical side and his team got increasingly frustrated as a series of clumsy challenges failed to tempt referee Howard Webb to delve into his pocket for a card.

Arsenal fans started chanting; “We want Cesc Fabregas” at the start of the second half and with less than half an hour to go manager Arsene Wenger heeded their pleas.

Arsenal skipper Fabregas, out with a hamstring injury since Nov. 23, came on with Robin van Persie in a double substitution for the ineffectual Tomas Rosicky and Jack Wilshire.

But it was United who created the better chances and Arsenal had Szczesny to thank for some excellent saves, first from Anderson and an attempted lob by Rooney.

Rooney had sent his spot-kick high into the stands and Arsenal may feel that deserved to happen because Clichy had been somewhat unlucky to give away the penalty as he could not move out of the way when Nani was dribbling past him.

The hosts held on, while the biggest cheers of the night were reserved for the rescued miners who posed for photos in the stands.