In the 30-year history of the Premier League, there has never been a rivalry quite like the one between Manchester United and Arsenal.
In fact, in the entire history of English top-flight soccer, there has rarely been such intense bad blood between two teams from opposite ends of the country.
In the 1990s, Manchester United were the dominant force in the Premier League, ruling over the competition like a ruthless dictator.
But like all dictators, they didn’t fare well when their authority was seriously challenged.
That challenge came in the form of Arsène Wenger, a thin, professor-like figure who joined Arsenal in 1996 and transformed the club forever.
Wenger quickly set about bringing the Gunners into the modern era, banning the infamous “Tuesday Club,” where players would spend the afternoon drinking, and revamping players’ diets and training schedules.
It took just a season for his impact to take hold, as the North London team won their first Premier League title in 1997-98, sparking a fierce rivalry with United for the next four seasons.
During that time, the two teams would regularly battle it out for first and second place, but the peak of their heated duels came on September 21, 2003.
Arsenal traveled to Old Trafford that afternoon, aiming to maintain their unbeaten start to the Premier League season, having won four games and drawn two of their first six.
However, it was Sir Alex Ferguson’s side who impressed the most over the 90 minutes, preventing Arsenal from getting a single shot on target, and with 10 minutes left, Arsenal captain Patrick Vieira was shown a red card.
United took advantage of the extra man in stoppage time when Diego Forlán went down under a challenge from Martin Keown, and the referee pointed to the penalty spot.
Up stepped Ruud van Nistelrooy, one of the league’s top strikers alongside Thierry Henry.
But as the clock ticked into added time, and the pressure mounted on the Dutch forward to score with the game’s final kick, Van Nistelrooy fired the ball over the bar, leaving the match goalless.
The real drama, however, was just beginning. After the miss, Van Nistelrooy was confronted by Keown, Ray Parlour, Ashley Cole, and Kolo Touré.
Keown eventually struck Van Nistelrooy on the head, while the other three players launched verbal attacks at him.
A few days later, after the chaos had settled, Arsenal were slapped with a £175,000 fine—the largest ever issued by the Football Association at the time.
Keown received a three-match ban, while Parlour, Cole, and Touré were each given a one-match ban.
Despite these setbacks, Arsenal remained relentless in their quest for perfection. That missed penalty helped pave the way for the Gunners to become the first team since Preston in 1888-89 to go an entire league season unbeaten.