IT'S GETTING TEDIOUS NOW

It’s taken him a few days but George Best finally gets in on the act. Ironically, his comments about “We would’ve punched them…” came on the MEN’s front page next to the headline about the clampdown on yobbishness through ASBOs.

"That's what children do - throw food. That's not fighting. We were real men, we'd have chinned them. But the rivalry is so intense that it's bound to boil over.

"I think United can win the title but I don't think they will. They have come from behind before but Arsenal are the red-hot favourites.

"My advice to United would be to play a settled team. Every week there's chopping and changing to keep everyone happy, but with Arsenal you could pick their side every week."

Arsenal’s Edu admits there was a bust-up:

"Afterwards, as we went down the tunnel, I saw people being pulled apart, people pushing, pointing and shouting.

"The United players were shouting at us and trying to wind us up about the result. But I didn't see any soup being thrown at anyone.

"To be honest, there was nothing that I haven't seen in the Brazilian derbies. Derby matches in Brazil are worse. I like to play in games like this with this intense rivalry.

"I think we were a lot fairer in the tackles than United. Jose Antonio Reyes was being kicked all over the park - they were beating up the boy. And Gary Neville was tackling in such a way that he should have been sent off.

"I also thought Rio Ferdinand was fortunate to remain on the pitch after his challenge on Freddie Ljungberg as the last defender in the first half.

"The way both teams played showed that neither team wanted to give in and, of course, every time we meet it's going to be like that.

"It shows the intensity of the fight for dominance between us and that is good for the sport and the Premier League. The games are played with a lot of energy but I think some of the United players were malicious last Sunday.”

Meanwhile Vieira insists Arsenal are still on course for the title:

“We're not under pressure, we're doing quite well. After all, we're the ones at the top of the league and eight points ahead of United. We've nothing to prove to anybody. We're a really strong team with great character and really believe in ourselves.

"That's why we think we can win beat any team and win any trophy if we're focused on it. This is a big year for us because the target is high. Now it's up to us to deliver.

"Arsene has signed because he's started something here and feels he hasn't finished yet. To finish the job he has to take the club the furthest he can. We're never going to be satisfied until we win the Champions League, because we want to be the best.

"That's the target and that's why I think we can achieve everything, because people are fighting to be the best and because we want everything to be perfect. Arsenal is going to be one of the biggest clubs in Europe because every year people want more and more.

"Every year we want to win trophies and every year we want the team to do well in the Champions League or the Premiership."