5 footballers who played for both Manchester United and Arsenal

1) Robin Van Persie

There is not a single player on this list that defines the bitterness of this rivalry more than the controversial transfer of Robin Van Persie. The rivalry might have intensified in the early 2000s but it turned sour in 2012.

Robin Van Persie, Arsenal's top scorer and Captain decided he wanted to move to Manchester United in search of silverware. The Dutchman had grown tired of not winning anything with the Gunners and jumped ship.

Arsenal were unable to refuse an offer with Wenger admitting the club were not in a financially strong enough position to keep their top players. ‘He scores when he wants’ was a common chant by the fans in tribute to Van Persie every time he scored for Arsenal.

But moving to United was the ultimate betrayal. To rub salt into the wounds, he went on to win the title in his first season with Red Devils which was to be Sir Alex Ferguson’s last season in charge as he stepped down from the game after an illustrious career.

Van Persie stayed at the club for another 2 years before moving away without any considerable success. But the rivalry between the two giants has never been the same since and with Jose Mourinho now at the helm it is set to become more heated than ever