Arsenal vs Man United Timeline & H2H Stats

The rivalry between Arsenal and Manchester United is one that has ebbed and flowed over the years. It is not based on geography, nor really on any one particular incident and, in fact, for many years these teams have not really been rivals at all. Nonetheless, when the two meet it remains a huge clash and that is because the Gunners and United are two of the three most successful sides in English football.

With the north London giants being the record winners of the FA Cup (just one ahead of the Red Devils ahead of the 2024/25 season) and Man United the most successful team in terms of Premier League wins (both in the PL era and in terms of top-flight titles), it is no surprise that there has been real animosity between the duo at various times. On many occasions over the years, the two teams have been battling it out for the same trophies, and this is one of the key things that makes a rivalry develop.

This was most marked during the late 1990s and early years of the 21st century, when Arsene Wenger and Sir Alex Ferguson oversaw a period of prolonged Arsenal and Man United success. There were various verbal spats between the two, with these sometimes almost becoming physical. The most controversial incident involved Fergie and one of Wenger’s players, however, with Cesc Fàbregas recently confirming he was at the heart of “Pizzagate”.

Also known as the “Battle of the Buffet”, the incident occurred after United beat Arsenal 2-0 in October 2004, ending their long unbeaten run at 49 games. A melee occurred in the tunnel after the clash, with Fabregas throwing a slice of pizza at Man United’s boss. Needless to say, that did not calm the situation down.

The rivalry between Arsenal and Man United calmed down as Arsenal became less of threat to the Red Devils’ dominance and Chelsea took up that mantle. However, at its height, games between the two were feisty, to say the least, with the managers’ on-field generals, Patrick Vieira and Roy Keane at the heart of that. Between the start of 1997 and February 2005, there were seven red cards shown in this fixture.

There have been around 250 meetings between the clubs in all competitions with the honours broadly even. Among that huge number of clashes, there have been far too many memorable moments. Ones Arsenal wish they could forget include the 8-2 drubbing they suffered in 2011, and the FA Cup semi-final in 1999. In that clash, Arsenal missed a late penalty and couldn’t win against 10 men, after Keane was sent off, and Ryan Giggs scored a wonder goal in extra time to win it for United.

The Gunners have had their ups too, of course. They beat United 3-2 in the FA Cup final in 1979, as well as in a penalty shootout in the final in 2005. They also have big wins of their own, including a 4-0 win in 2001, a 5-1 win back in 1961, and a 6-2 victory way back in 1947.

Arsenal’s Full Match History Against Man United