Should Wenger have slain the United beast?
A timely study of the Frenchman’s famous battles with Ferguson raises some questions, writes
The 1999 FA Cup semi-final replay was one sliding-doors moment for the two clubs and managers
Adelicious slice of serendipity will have the makers of The Feud: Ferguson vs Wenger
rubbing their hands with glee before the programme airs at 10pm on Channel 5 tonight.
What could have been an indulgent, if agreeable, nostalgia trip has been utterly recast by Friday’s news that Arsene Wenger is stepping down as Arsenal manager at the end of the season.
Despite the risk of viewers suffering Wenger-weariness after a weekend of tributes, commentary and pull-outs, the Frenchman’s imminent departure adds resonance to a slick production that will leave fans of both clubs smiling.
A brisk 45-minute tour of the explosive rivalry between Manchester United and Arsenal that defined English football at the turn of the millennium, The Feud begins in earnest with Arsenal’s 1-0 win at Old Trafford in 1998 and ends with United’s 4-2 win at Highbury in February 2005.
The duel produced more sub-plots than a Hollywood thriller. Roy Keane and Patrick Vieira’s struggle for midfield supremacy, later Thierry Henry and Ruud van Nistelrooy’s shootout for the Golden Boot, the industrial north versus the cosmopolitan south, the respective merits of the Treble and an unbeaten season and two managers happy to let tensions boil over.
In truth, you could make a film about each match, and Arsenal and United fans are unlikely to learn anything new. The
Feud’s intimate behind-the-scenes footage are a real asset, giving us a glimpse at Ferguson’s four-letter gee-ups and Wenger finishing work at Highbury long after the cleaners have left.
Contributions from former players including Martin Keown, Lee Dixon, Paul Scholes and Phil Neville bring colour. The unrelenting excellence of Ferguson’s reign is fully explored, but Wenger’s fate brings the pathos.
Though the man himself would argue that Champions League survival in the Emirates Stadium austerity years was his biggest achievement, memories of Wenger’s first Arsenal decade will remain most vivid, and his battles with Ferguson’s United indelible.
The first sign of trouble came in 1997, when Ferguson took umbrage at Wenger’s criticisms of the fixture scheduling. In a Proper Football Man routine that would make Dean Saunders blush, Ferguson remarked sourly: “He has no experience of English football. He’s come from JA-PAN.”
Three league titles, including two Doubles, a 49-game unbeaten stretch and four FA Cups were the fruits of a glorious first decade of Wenger’s tenure. However, at the risk of sacrilege, it is impossible not to wonder if Arsenal should have won more. Did they miss the chance to slay the United beast once and for all?
The 1999 FA Cup semi-final replay was one such sliding-doors moment. Had Dennis Bergkamp scored his penalty in extra time against United’s 10 men at Villa Park, the Treble would have been over. Peter Schmeichel saved and Ryan Giggs did the rest. United would go on to pip Arsenal by one point in the league. Champions League success also eluded Wenger, while Arsenal threw away the title in 2002-03, despite their obvious superiority to United, never winning back-to-back championships.
Wenger’s Arsenal farewell will be warm and reverent, and we await that muchanticipated book in which he promises to tell all. Until then, it is down to programmes like the
The Feud to sate our curiosity.