Clockwatch: Man Utd 6-1 Arsenal

Hat-trick hero Yorke on song for United

All the action minute-by-minute as Manchester United go 16 points clear at the top of the Premiership after crushing Arsenal.

How United took Arsenal apart - scroll down for later action.

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2 mins: A perfect start for United as Dwight Yorke combines with Paul Scholes for Yorke to put United 1-0 up. Man Utd 1-0 Arsenal.

4 mins: Arsenal win first corner after pressure from Robert Pires.

5 mins: Clumsy tackle by Ray Parlour on Yorke, who escapes a booking.

7 mins: Sylvain Wiltord fires wide of Fabien Barthez's goal.

8 mins: Roy Keane tidies up at the back for United under pressure from Thierry Henry.

14 mins: Slick passing by Arsenal leads to Henry stabbing home an equaliser for the Londoners. Man Utd 1-1 Arsenal.

17 mins: United back in the lead after Yorke escapes off-side trap to slot home. Man Utd 2-1 Arsenal.

18 mins: Yorke nearly grabs his third from a header but David Seaman tips over.

21 mins: Yorke gets his hat-trick after David Beckham puts him through with a great 60-yard pass. Man Utd 3-1 Arsenal.

25 mins: Yorke breaks away and sets up Keane to slot home past Seaman. Man Utd 4-1 Arsenal.

30 mins: United continue to dominate as they look for a fifth goal against shell-shocked Arsenal.

36 mins: Arsenal fans begin to drift out of Old Trafford.

37 mins: Nicky Butt drifts past Gilles Grimandi to give Ole Gunnar Solskjaer an easy chance to hit United's fifth. Man Utd 5-1 Arsenal.

41 mins: Scholes chests the ball goalwards after a Beckham free-kick but Seaman saves with his knees.

45 mins: Referee Paul Durkin blows his whistle on a blistering first-half performance from United. Man Utd 5-1 Arsenal.

Yorke fires in his first

46 mins: United start the second half as Fredrik Ljungberg replaces Ashley Cole.

48 mins: A last-ditch tackle by Jaap Stam stops Patrick Vieira's run at goal.

52 mins: United begin to expose gaps in the Arsenal defence as the champions pile on the pressure.

60 mins: Arsenal manage a corner to ease pressure on their defence but the Gunners fail to trouble Fabien Barthez.

62 mins: Beckham lets fly on the half-volley from 20 yards but Seaman deals with the shot.

64 mins: Stam goes close with a header after a floated Beckham free-kick but the ball goes just wide of Seaman's goal.

68 mins: Defender Nelson Vivas replaces Ray Parlour, who limps off the Old Trafford pitch with a hamstring injury.

75 mins: United skipper Keane and hat-trick hero Yorke are replaced by Luke Chadwick and Sheringham.

77 mins: An attack involving Pires typifies United's resolve as Wes Brown clears his lines with little difficulty.

80 mins: An unmarked Sheringham heads wide after a Beckham cross.

83 mins: Chadwick weaves through the visitor's defence but his final ball is lacking as Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger looks on with disgust.

87 mins: Ljungberg is put through by Henry put he chips the ball wide of Barthez.

88 mins: Beckham and Vivas square up in a game that did not have a single booking.

89 mins: Sheringham makes it six for United as he clinically puts the ball in the corner of the Arsenal net seconds after Solskjaer hits a post. Man Utd 6-1 Arsenal.

90 mins: A beaming Alex Ferguson walks around the pitch as his side go 16 points clear at the top of the table.

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Man Utd: Barthez, Gary Neville, Silvestre, Brown, Stam, Beckham, Butt, Keane, Scholes, Yorke, Solskjaer. Subs: Rachubka, Chadwick, Irwin, Phil Neville, Sheringham.

Arsenal: Seaman, Luzhny, Cole, Grimandi, Stepanovs, Pires, Vieira, Parlour, Silvinho, Wiltord, Henry. Subs: Ljungberg, Bergkamp, Manninger, Vivas, Kanu.

Referee: P Durkin (Dorset).