“We Became The Better Team” – Gunners Icon Reflects On Man Utd Rivalry

By The Editor
on 29th February 2024

Dennis Bergkamp reflects on those infamous battles…

Arsenal hero Dennis Bergkamp took a trip down memory lane to reflect on the infamous battles with Manchester United during his time in north London, Arsenal Media reports.

Bergkamp stated that while Man United was the standard when arriving in England, he feels Arsene Wenger’s side eventually surpassed them in terms of quality.

Celebrating the 20th anniversary of our unprecedented ‘Invincibles’ campaign, the 54-year-old revealed that the team felt a point at Old Trafford was no longer decent – marking the change in mentality.

After achieving Premier League utopia in 2004, the rivalry between the two sides would finally end a year later as Patrick Vieira secured the FA Cup with the winning penalty in a shootout.

For Bergkamp, the pinnacle clash between the side was at Old Trafford in 2003, arguably the most infamous goalless draw in Premier League history.

“When I arrived at Arsenal, Manchester United were the biggest team and we were one of the teams trying to compete with them,” the Premier League Hall of Famer said,

“They were always seen as the big challenge, but at some point we got past them.

“We became the better team and people looked at us that way. It showed in that game they were desperate to get a result against us, and in the end we were fairly disappointed with a draw.

“Then at the end with their penalty miss, there was a lot of emotion. I always want to be the peacekeeper if I can, not let things get out of hand, but of course when you are in the middle of it you want to protect your players,” Bergkamp added.

The two teams have been on quite the journey over the past 20 years though Bergkamp’s words can not be debated in the present day.

Arsenal are by far the better team and have been since Sir Alex Ferguson departed Old Trafford over a decade ago. The Gunners have finished above their former rivals in every campaign since 2013 – apart from three outlier seasons.