Ex Players & Games involving The Mighty Arsenal FC !! ..... The Mighty Arsenal v Manchester United Games back in the day ..... Fixtures between Manchester United and The Mighty Arsenal had seen a number of controversial incidents in previous seasons. The rivalry between the two clubs had grown more intense since the formation of The Premier League in 1992, since when all but one Premier League title had been won by Manchester United or Arsenal. However the rivalry could be traced back to Alex Fergusons first fixture against Arsenal as United manager in 1987 when David Rocastle was sent off and a row erupted. The following season Brian McClair missed a penalty for United in an FA Cup tie and Nigel Winterburn made a point of aggravating him. McClair got his revenge in 1990 after a lunging tackle from Winterburn on Denis Irwin, McClair and Irwin both kicked Winterburn while he lay on the floor, sparking a 21 man brawl. Both teams were fined and deducted points and it has often been suggested that this was a turning point in relations. The rivalry continued to intensify as hard men such as Patrick Vieira, Roy Keane and Martin Keown joined the sides. The previous league match between the two clubs in April 2003 at Highbury was a competitive and bad tempered affair. In a match that finished in a 2 - 2 draw Sol Campbell received a straight red card for violent conduct after elbowing Ole Gunnar Solskjær in the face. Manchester United went on to claim the title from Arsenal by five points after clawing back from being eight points down at the start of March 2003. The clubs had also been paired together in the fourth round of the FA Cup in February 2003. Paul Scholes and Ruud van Nistelrooy of Manchester United and Patrick Vieira of Arsenal were all shown yellow cards within the first seven minutes of the match and referee Jeff Winter had to call Vieira and Roy Keane together to calm their team-mates down. Keane himself received a yellow card in the first half and Ryan Giggs missed an open goal from 18 yards. Arsenal eventually won the match 2 - 0 and the result infuriated Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson to such an extent that he kicked a boot across the changing room that hit David Beckham above the left eye. As Manchester United and Arsenal won the Premier League and FA Cup respectively, both teams met in another heated match at the Millennium Stadium a month earlier for the 2003 Community Shield. Phil Neville was booked in the first minute for a challenge on Patrick Vieira, and a minute later Ashley Cole received a caution for fouling Ole Gunnar Solskjær. Yellow cards were also given to Quinton Fortune and Paul Scholes for United and Patrick Vieira for Arsenal, Gunners substitute Francis Jeffers was shown a straight red for a kick on Phil Neville and, despite originally going unpunished, Sol Campbell was later given a three-match ban by the FA for kicking out at Eric Djemba Djemba. The game finished 1 - 1 after 90 minutes and United eventually won the Shield 4 - 3 on penalties. Ruud van Nistelrooy had his spot kick saved by debutant Jens Lehmann but it was his opposite number and fellow debutant Tim Howard who was the hero, saving Giovanni van Bronckhorsts and Robert Pirès penalties...... @loved the arsenal v utd encounters, real men !!
Posted on: Sat, 20 Dec 2014 12:56:57 +0000