Pressing has been part of United for years

The epic battles between Manchester United and Arsenal have been trending in the last week, following the news that Arsene Wenger is set to leave the north London club at the end of the season.

The Frenchman is widely credited for modernising the Gunners and his various teams have provided outstanding competition for us down the years, most notably when Sir Alex Ferguson was in charge.

Many matches between Ferguson’s United and Wenger’s Arsenal became iconic, and the rivalry arguably reached a peak during the mid-2000s when the two clubs consistently fought it out for supremacy in the Premier League.

Stoke City midfielder Darren Fletcher was part of that famous era and, in the latest issue of Inside United magazine, the highly-respected Academy graduate recounts exactly what it was like to face Wenger’s Arsenal…

“We were always hard and fair whenever we faced Arsenal. We just knew that you couldn’t stand back and let them play their game because they had the ability to hurt teams. You have to be in their faces and disrupt them, stop them playing how they want to. Arsene Wenger probably didn’t agree, as he didn’t with many refereeing decisions, but as far as I’m concerned, we were never dirty. We just made sure we were at them from the off, in their faces and that isn’t a new concept.

“You hear so much now about teams pressing, or gegenpressing or whatever, but that had been a part of United for years. Setting a tempo, setting a speed, starting a press, making an atmosphere. It had been part of an Alex Ferguson team-talk since he first came to the club, so it’s not a new concept; it’s just got a new twang to it. It was a compliment to them, in some ways, that we approached the games like that because they had some very good players.

“They also had a lot of physical attributes. They had a quick, powerful team with big lads like Patrick Vieira, Sol Campbell, Edu, Pascal Cygan, and, at Highbury especially, you were aware just how small the pitch was when you were up against big players.

“With Vieira especially, you knew he’d be at you quick because of his long legs on that small pitch. You felt like it was touch-tackle the whole game. One- and two-touch, and it was really ferocious at times. You knew you wouldn’t have any time on the ball. Fortunately for us, we were used to that because we played in very small areas in training. The onus was on moving the ball very quickly, so we were very well prepared for that kind of situation in games.

“Particularly when we were the top two teams in the country, the atmospheres for games between Manchester United and Arsenal were great to be a part of. At Highbury, it was more intimate and enclosed, but it didn’t really affect you as such. It was a bit like Anfield in the sense that it’s so tight and you feel like you can’t breathe at times, because the pitch is small and the fans are right on top of you, but I couldn’t say that ever affected us as such. We were used to it and we expected it.

“There was always a lot of history between the sides and that built up a lot when we were fighting for league titles and cups every year, but those were the games you relished. Each one was a chance to test yourselves against the best and put down a marker for everyone to see.”

Inside United magazine is available to order online via www.ManUtd.com/Magazine.