Feature

TEN memorable moments from Man Utd v Arsenal

By Adrian Kajumba 7 Mar 2025
MUNARS Memorable Moments graphic

Ahead of Sunday's match at Old Trafford, Adrian Kajumba selects iconic events in past meetings between the clubs

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Manchester United host Arsenal on Sunday in the next instalment of a fixture that has produced countless memorable moments.

Football writer Adrian Kajumba looks back at some of the standout matches, goals, incidents and individual performances from their meetings during the Premier League era. 

Overmars settles season-defining encounter - March 1998 

Arsene Wenger’s favourite Premier League title triumph was the first of his three and it was won after a historic chase that included a crucial run-in victory at Manchester United.

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Just before Christmas in the Frenchman’s first full season in charge of Arsenal, they were in sixth place and 13 points behind leaders Man Utd.

Helped by a dip in their rivals' form, Arsenal hauled themselves back into contention by the time they travelled to Old Trafford in mid-March, kicking off nine points behind with three matches in hand.

Their subsequent 1-0 win helped tip the title balance in their favour.

Marc Overmars scored the game’s decisive late goal, bursting onto Nicolas Anelka’s header before running through and slipping the ball past Peter Schmeichel.

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The victory was the second of 10 in a row that Arsenal reeled off to win their first Premier League title by one point.

"The title which meant the most was in 1997/98," said Wenger. "I realised that we would win the title when we won at Manchester United."

The 13-point gap closed by Arsenal remains the record points deficit that a team has overcome to be crowned Premier League champions.

Henry’s Highbury wonder goal - October 2000

Thierry Henry scored one of the most iconic goals not just in the history of this fixture, but also the entire Premier League era, to settle the clubs' first meeting of 2000/01.

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Man Utd appeared to be in little danger when the ball was rolled into Henry who had his back to goal and defender Denis Irwin in close attendance behind him.

But in a flash, the Frenchman flicked the ball up, swivelled and smashed a volley into the net.

It was a spectacular way for Henry to end a six-match, near month-long goal drought in all competitions.

"When you haven’t been scoring goals, sometimes you need to try something a little bit crazy," Wenger said. 

Along with the skill and brilliant finish, another memorable element to Henry’s audacious effort was that he scored it past Fabien Barthez, his French international and former Monaco team-mate.

They were away together on France duty the next day and Henry’s goal was brought up in conversation by others in the dressing room. 

"I basically walked out of the room," Henry said. "I didn't want to talk about it because that's how much I respect Fabien Barthez."

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Wiltord wins Premier League at Old Trafford - May 2002

Man Utd were targeting a fourth successive title in 2001/02, having pipped Arsenal in each of the previous three seasons. But when the Gunners finally ended the Red Devils' period of dominance, they did so in the sweetest fashion - on their rivals’ turf. 

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A 19-match unbeaten run from December had lifted Arsenal from third to first and they were five points clear of second-placed United with two games left. 

The way the fixtures had fallen, the top two sides met at Old Trafford in their penultimate match of the season.

Sylvain Wiltord’s second-half goal gave Arsenal the victory they needed to win the title - their second under Wenger - and finish their league campaign unbeaten away from home too.

Meanwhile, that defeat, coupled with a final-day draw against Charlton, meant Man Utd fell from second place at the start of the final week of the season and ended up finishing third behind Liverpool.

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The Battle of Old Trafford - September 2003

Arsenal strung together a top-flight record unbeaten run between May 2023 and October 2004, spanning an incredible 49 matches, but it could have ended before they got to double figures - when they travelled to Old Trafford in the eighth game of the run.

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The Gunners were staring defeat in the face when Man Utd were awarded a stoppage-time penalty to win the game and go top of the league. 

But Ruud van Nistelrooy blew the opportunity, blasting his spot-kick against the bar, and the match finished 0-0.

In unprecedented, unforgettable scenes which summed up the animosity between the teams, and led by defender Martin Keown, Arsenal celebrated wildly in Van Nistelrooy’s face, bumping and barging the striker.

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They delighted in his misfortune after Van Nistelrooy was involved in an earlier incident that led to Patrick Vieira’s red card. Six Arsenal players and two from United were charged by The Football Association in the fallout to the match. 

Just last month, almost 22 years later, Van Nistelrooy and Keown came face-to-face again in a rare reunion that brought all the memories of their infamous clash flooding back.

Keown, a TV pundit for the match between Van Nistelrooy’s Leicester City side and Arsenal, said to his old adversary: "Apologies for all of the shenanigans that went on back in the day."

"What happens on the pitch, stays on the pitch," Van Nistelrooy replied. "They were good rivalries weren’t they?"

Man United end Arsenal’s Invincibles run - October 2004

Thirteen months later, Van Nistelrooy had his redemption moment. Defending champions Arsenal were unbeaten in 49 league matches and they arrived at Old Trafford with the aim of making it a half-century. 

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The Gunners were 17 minutes away from achieving that when Wayne Rooney won a late penalty, putting Van Nistelrooy on the spot against Arsenal once more. 

This time, the Dutchman converted. Emotion poured out of Van Nistelrooy as he celebrated, hinting at how much his previous miss had weighed on him. 

Rooney added a late second goal, on his 19th birthday, to confirm the end of Arsenal’s remarkable run.

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Tempers flared multiple times during the game and the ill feeling spilled over into the tunnel after full-time.

Former Arsenal midfielder Cesc Fabregas has since admitted throwing the slice of pizza that hit United manager Sir Alex Ferguson, an incident that led to the game being dubbed "Pizzagate" and the "Battle of the Buffet."

Keane and Vieira’s tunnel clash - February 2005

Within the rivalry between the clubs, Roy Keane versus Vieira became the fiercest, long-running battle between two players in Premier League history. On countless occasions, the captains of the Premier League’s two dominant teams of the time clashed, refusing to back down whenever they faced each other.

The most famous flashpoint between the midfielders came in the Highbury tunnel rather than on the pitch, though. 

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After taking exception to what he viewed as Gary Neville’s physical approach in previous encounters, Vieira chased the Man Utd defender into the tunnel following the pre-match warm-ups, to make his feelings clear.

News of that incident then reached Keane, prompting the furious, finger-pointing Man Utd skipper to confront Vieira as the teams lined up ahead of kick-off. 

Referee Graham Poll tried in vain to calm Keane down and the row set the tone for the night.

Keane's tunnel incident with Vieira


An equally dramatic match followed, between the two closest challengers to eventual champions Chelsea.

Man Utd went behind twice in the first half but they fought back both times to eventually win 4-2, despite having Mikael Silvestre sent off 21 minutes from time. Their victory was sealed by an unforgettable chip from an unlikely scorer, defender John O’Shea.

Man United’s historic 8-2 win - August 2011

The Red Devils were ruthless as they inflicted Arsenal's heaviest defeat in the league for 84 years, racking up an incredible scoreline at Old Trafford.

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Already leading 3-1 at half-time, Man Utd scored five more times in the final half-hour as Wenger's depleted Arsenal side capitulated. Rooney grabbed two of those late goals to complete a hat-trick.

The Gunners' misery was compounded by Robin van Persie - who would join United a year later - having a penalty saved and Carl Jenkinson’s red card.

Once upon a time, the opposing managers at Old Trafford that day were the biggest of enemies, their relationship fuelling this rivalry.

But even Ferguson had sympathy for his already under-fire old foe Wenger, saying: "We could have scored more but you don’t want to when Arsenal have a weakened team like that."

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A poor start to this season came on the back of a decline that had seen the Gunners fall from Premier League contenders to top-four challengers over the previous, title-less seven seasons.

They then had a disappointing transfer window ahead of their trip to Old Trafford, with Gael Clichy, Fabregas and Samir Nasri all leaving the club.

The Man Utd defeat underlined the size of the task ahead for Wenger and prompted a late flurry of five signings, including current manager Mikel Arteta

Arsenal recovered from taking just one point from their opening three matches, and finding themselves in 17th place, to finish third while United were runners-up, missing out on the title on goal difference to Manchester City.

Rashford's fairytale Premier League bow - February 2016 

Just a few days after scoring a double on his dream debut - against FC Midtjylland in the UEFA Europa League - things got even better for Marcus Rashford when he announced himself in the Premier League too. 

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Anthony Martial's injury in the warm-up had opened the door for Rashford's surprise elevation to Man Utd's first team in midweek. And he maintained the momentum at the weekend, in a stunning league debut against Arsenal.

Rashford, then 18, was not listed among Man Utd’s players in the programme but he had made a name for himself by the end of the hosts’ 3-2 win over the Gunners. 

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United manager Louis van Gaal made this match additionally memorable by flinging himself to the floor in front of bemused fourth official Mike Dean as he insinuated that Arsenal forward Alexis Sanchez had gone to ground too easily.

De Gea’s 14-save display - December 2017

David De Gea produced one of the great goalkeeping performances in Premier League history when Man Utd won 3-1 at Emirates Stadium in 2017/18.

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The result that ended Arsenal's run of 12 successive home league victories was down to a record-equalling display of defiance from De Gea as much as the goals scored at the other end.

De Gea frustrated the Gunners almost single-handedly, making 14 saves to match Tim Krul and Vito Mannone's joint record for the most saves made by a goalkeeper in a Premier League match.

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At times, even Arsenal's players were left with looks of disbelief on their face as De Gea produced stop after stop, not least when he denied Alexandre Lacazette and Sanchez with a remarkable, quickfire double save.

Lacazette managed to score early in the second half but De Gea prevented the hosts adding to that goal, even after Man Utd were reduced to 10 men by Paul Pogba's red card.

Man Utd manager Jose Mourinho said: "What I saw today was the best from a goalkeeper in the world."

Nketiah wins five-goal thriller - January 2023

In a thrilling throwback to some of their eventful meetings when this rivalry was at its height, Arsenal and Man Utd served up a high-octane, roller-coaster classic at Emirates Stadium in the 2022/23 season.

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The visitors took the lead through Rashford’s stunning strike before Eddie Nketiah’s first goal and Bukayo Saka’s fine long-range effort put Arsenal ahead.

Lisandro Martinez looked to have earned Man Utd a point with a diving header.

But, willed on by their supporters in an electric atmosphere at the Emirates, Nketiah diverted in a 90th-minute winner to spark jubilant full-time celebrations as then-leaders Arsenal kept their title pursuit on track.

Arsenal's thrilling win against United

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