Robert Pires packed a lot into his seven years at Arsenal, winning
two Premier League titles and three FA Cups.
Few of his memories, however, are more vivid than those involving
the Gunners' rivalry with Manchester United when the two clubs were
English football's undisputed heavyweights.
Often the pre-match bluster from Arsene Wenger and Sir Alex
Ferguson was as compelling as the action on the field and, as the
clubs prepare for another explosive meeting at the Emirates Stadium
tomorrow, Pires has revealed the depth of the enmity between two
teams who again look set to decide the destination of the
title.
"What exactly motivated this rivalry in the first place is not
totally clear to me," said Pires, who left Highbury for the more
sedate environs of Villarreal two summers ago.
"But I believe towards the end it was all to do with Manchester
United's excessive arrogance and their excessive physical
play.
"With each triumph, Ferguson would insist that his team was the
best and that never went down well at Arsenal. These things
irritate players.
"For any Arsenal player, there are six matches each season that
really matter more than the others: the ones against Spurs, Chelsea
and Manchester United.
"But United is extra special. It is another step up from the other
two. At the start of my time, United had been the traditional
champions for a decade and believed they held some kind of power
over London clubs.
"Because of that, any victory over United was sensational and one
to savour. That is still the case today."
You don't have to look too hard into Premier League history to find
explosive meetings between Arsene Wenger's Arsenal and Ferguson's
United.
The mayhem that followed Ruud van Nistelrooy's penalty miss at Old
Trafford in September 2003 is a much-viewed clip on YouTube, as is
Roy Keane's confrontation with Patrick Vieira in the Highbury
tunnel in February 2005.
And then there was the time Ferguson launched a boot at David
Beckham inadvertently of course after Arsenal triumphed in the
FA Cup two years before that.
Nothing, however, will perhaps ever compare with the slapstick that
followed United's 2-0 home win in October 2004 when after seeing
their unbeaten run ended after 49 games Wenger's players
splattered Ferguson with pizza left for them in the visitors'
dressing room.
"That match was terrible," reflected Pires. "It was one of the
worst in my career, one of the hardest ones I have ever lived
through.
"United just provoked us all afternoon and I still don't know how
our players avoided injury. We were lucky.
"As for the incidents in the tunnel still I do not have a very
clear story of them."
Three years on and still no United or Arsenal player has broken
ranks to reveal details of just what happened in the narrow
corridor that links the dressing rooms at Old Trafford. Clearly, it
is being saved for the autobiographies.
Physical confrontation has, however, been a theme of the rivalry
between the clubs over the past ten years.
Whereas the mutual respect between former Chelsea boss Jose
Mourinho and Ferguson appeared to keep the sparring largely verbal,
that has never been the case with United and Arsenal.
Wenger and Ferguson have had daggers drawn for years, which has
been reflected on the pitch, with each manager blaming the other
for a series of incidents that have required FA intervention.
Pires added: "In the dressing room before a United game, Wenger
would have one message every time.
"He would just ask us to be calm and to play with our usual style
and not to be affected by the opposition.
"Specifically, he would tell us not to enter into wars with people
like Roy Keane, Wayne Rooney or the Neville brothers.
"He would tell us that he knew what United would do but that we had
to be professional. But Wenger badly wanted us to beat them.
"In the run up to those games he would remind us of the rivalry and
tell us what it meant to our supporters.
"There was no extra money on offer, of course. The win bonus would
be the same for United as it would, for example, against a team
like West Brom. But Arsenal players don't need an extra incentive
when they face United. It's all in their heads already."
Pires admits that he feared for Arsenal's future when Thierry Henry
also left for Spain in the summer, but feels Wenger's team are
about to prove him wrong if they can pass tomorrow's test.
"I did doubt Arsenal after the exit of Henry but the young players
are demonstrating their excellence already," he said. "The match
against United will be a test of fire for them.
"If Arsenal beat them I think they will win the title and that
would give me a lot of satisfaction."