The Premier League has become a sanitised product in 2025. A fiery exchange similar to the clash that unfolded between Roy Keane and Patrick Vieira in the Highbury tunnel wouldn't be seen in today's game and it's no wonder that fans look back at archive footage with great fondness.

Revisionism is rife in football, but the 1990s and 2000s were objectively an enthralling time, with the injection of broadcasting cash in the Premier League yet to purify the spectacle on TV.

There was a level of aggression permitted in matches that is no longer deemed acceptable, ticket prices were cheaper so there were better atmospheres, and players seemed to care more.

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Manchester United were also at the peak of their powers with Sir Alex Ferguson in charge and there were some legendary games along the way, particularly with Arsenal, who became the biggest competitors to United after the appointment of Arsene Wenger.

Arsenal's appoint of the Frenchman was left field but it paved the way for an influx of foreign managers in England. Wenger led the Gunners to three Premier League titles and his side were looking to defend their title in 2004/2005, the season in which Keane and Vieira famously clashed.

When Arsenal visited Old Trafford in October 2004, United claimed a 2-0 win to end Arsenal's unbeaten league run at 49 games and it was later dubbed the "Battle of the Buffet" due to tempers boiling over between players in the tunnel, and a slice of pizza being thrown at Ferguson.

Arsenal fans believed Wayne Rooney had dived to win a penalty, which Ruud Van Nistelrooy converted to open the scoring in the second half. In a box office post-match interview, Wenger also described Van Nistelrooy as a cheat and criticised the referee for his performance.

But it was Chelsea who had surged to the summit of the Premier League under a charismatic and fresh faced Jose Mourinho. The west London club were favourites for the title and that teed up a fascinating rematch between United and Arsenal at Highbury at the start of February.

'Manchester United: The Lost Tapes' is a podcast series written by Wayne Barton, and narrated by Patrick Barclay, and its latest episode reflects on the rivalry between United and Arsenal. Interviews with Ferguson and Gary Neville took place before the iconic clash against Arsenal at Highbury on February 1, 2005, and Saturday marks the 20-year anniversary of the game.

"It's a great one for Chelsea because either way, one of us is going to lose ground. The two of us could lose ground, of course, if it's a draw and Chelsea would be in a great position then," said Ferguson before facing Arsenal, with his interview brought back to life by The Lost Tapes.

"If one wins, the other suffers badly, but the way I look at is, I trust my players and have great players to go down there. It will be a hostile atmosphere and we know what to expect, but we've played in far more hostile atmospheres than the one we're going to play in on Tuesday. Players like Scholes, Keane and Giggs, they have that sort of experience, so I'm trusting these players."

Neville is now an outspoken pundit, but was more introverted during his playing days and said: "Well it will be the biggest game of the season because it's the one we're actually taking on at that point, in terms of it is another league fixture and Manchester United against Arsenal is always a massive match, but we do we feel we're in a good run of form.

"People have been saying Arsenal haven't had the greatest run of results recently, but they're still picking up a lot of points and they're still a point in front of us, and we're going to their place, which is always difficult, an extremely tight ground and you get very little space on the pitch.

"They have some excellent players and they're one of the best teams in Europe. We have a very difficult game at Arsenal, but we're in a good run of form and we're aware of what we need to do.

"And I just have a sneaky feeling that if either team is to win, then it will be us, and it will put a lot of pressure on Chelsea. I think the losers are going to find it very difficult. If a team was to win the match, I think that team will have the confidence that they can still go and challenge Chelsea for the title. I still think there's a twist and a turn left in the championship race."

What Neville predicted next was the opposite of what transpired. "You have arrive an hour before kick-off, you going into the changing room and you walk out half an hour before - it's the same. We play at grounds that are far more hostile than Highbury," he nonchalantly said.

"And that's no disrespect to the Arsenal fans, they have a great atmosphere when we go down there, but you play at Newcastle, Liverpool, Elland Road and Manchester City, all these stadiums have just as good atmospheres and are more hostile than Arsenal. You play all over Europe and the game on Tuesday has no difference, as it would be for their players coming to Old Trafford.

"Their players are experienced enough to play in these atmospheres. There is a rivalry between the two sides because we've been the two best teams over the last 10 years and that's just the way it is.

"People keep talking about Arsenal and United, but at the moment, we should be talking about catching Chelsea because that is our most important objective toward the end of the season."

Neville played down the occasion and expected a normal game, but he was confronted by Vieira after the warm-up and Keane took his moment to dress down the midfielder in the tunnel.

"Who the f*** d do you think you are," said Keane to a stunned Vieira. "I'll see you out there. See you out there, see you out there. Shouting your mouth off you… every week you're making out you're a nice guy. He's picking on Gary Neville? Why can't he pick on one of us?"

The referee Graham Poll warned Keane to calm down before the teams left the tunnel. The Irishman's eyes were glazed and he went out to deliver an outstanding performance in a 4-2 victory for United.

"I didn't threaten anybody. They are big enough players to handle themselves," said Vieira when he was asked about the clash after the game. "I had a talk with Roy Keane and that's it. Gary Neville is a big lad, he can handle himself. They just played better than us and deserved to win."

Keane said: "Patrick Vieira is 6ft 4in and having a go at Gary Neville. So I said, 'have a go at me'. If he wants to intimidate our players and thinks that Gary Neville is an easy target, I'm not having it."

United boss Ferguson added: "Vieira was well wound up for it. I've heard different stories. Patrick Vieira has apparently threatened some of our players and things like that."

United recorded home and away wins against a supremely talented Arsenal side that season, but Chelsea won the Premier League title as Mourinho vindicated his 'special one' nickname.

The clash between Keane and Vieira was the last duel between the pair, as Vieira departed Arsenal in the summer and Keane was booted out of United before the end of the year.

A special era had reached its conclusion as Ferguson looked to reconstruct his team to compete with Chelsea, and Keane and Vieira finally squashed their feud when they were retired.

ITV produced a documentary named 'Keane & Vieira - Best of Enemies' in 2013 and during filming, Keane said: “The biggest compliment I can give is I always knew I had to be at my very, very, very best against him."

Vieira, meanwhile, admitted: “He is my favourite enemy. I loved every aspect of his game.”