There used to be a time when teams dreaded the tough physical play of Dennis Bergkamp and Patrick Vieira.
When teams trembled at the terrific pace of Christiano Ronaldo and the monstrous shots by Wayne Rooney.
Not so long ago, United vs. Arsenal was the most important fixture on the Premier League calendar.
For almost a decade, their clashes would determine the champions, and the rivalry between the two managers and both sets of players was so intense and acrimonious that their collisions defined an era.
Aside from Wenger vs. Ferguson, it was also Roy Keane against Patrick Vieira, Ruud van Nistelrooy against Martin Keown and Paul Scholes vs. Cesc Fabregas.
There was also the day when Phil and Gary Neville kicked Jose Antonio Reyes off the Old Trafford pitch after being told by Ferguson that the Spanish forward would shrivel in the face of physical intimidation.
Arsenal and Wenger had Thierry Henry and Dennis Bergkamp, United had Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney; who can ever forget the 1999 FA Cup semifinal that ended with Ryan Giggs’s stunning solo goal to win the game for United at Villa Park?
Whenever these two teams met in those days, steam would rise from the pitch due to the heat between the two sets of players. But those days are gone.
Even under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, United are still struggling to navigate their way out of the post-Ferguson fog, almost five years after the Scot vacated his position as manager.
Arsenal are now heading into a dense fog of their own with Unai Emery in charge, but some would argue that they’ve been in the darkness for the past five years anyway due to the drift overseen by their out-of-date manager.
You could ask any football supporter familiar with the Premier League over the past 20 years to name their favourite United-Arsenal moment and they could come up with five in an instant.
The Keane-Vieira tunnel row at Highbury, Giggs’s goal in the semifinal, Henry’s chip and volley from 20 yards, Van Nistelrooy’s penalty hitting the bar in the final minute in 2003 and United’s stunning breakaway goal at the Emirates involving Rooney and Ronaldo.
Indeed, the days of bad blood during the Wenger-Ferguson era are now over, with each team’s subsequent fall from grace impacting their overall performance in the league.
Casual football fans are now looking at Liverpool and Man City as the most anticipated Premier League Clash with their heightened celebrity statuses.
These are the new giants of English Premiership football. And United and Arsenal fans have no choice but to accept that the golden days are long gone.
Sorry Ole behind the Wheel!
Sorry Unai Emery’s Red and White Army!