Games between Arsenal and Manchester United lost their spice some time around 2011 when the Gunners arrived at Old Trafford for a Premier League game and were sent packing 8-2.
Arsenal had fallen away from the upper echelons of English football by then, still routinely qualifying for the Champions League but failing to mount a serious title challenge since 2008 and, at that stage, without a trophy of any description since an FA Cup in 2005.
United were still at the peak of their powers then. Only a Didier Drogba goal that should have been flagged offside in 2010 and a late collapse against…
