Next weekend, Arsenal welcome Louis Van Gaal's Manchester United in what is always one of the Premier Leagues most anticipated fixtures. On both sides there are players who are facing their former clubs, but who else had crossed the divide?
George Graham
George Graham was one of the earliest players to swap North London for Manchester when he left Highbury in 1972 after six years at Arsenal. Graham was part of Arsenal's 1971 double winning team and was also part of the squad that beat Anderlecht to win the Fairs Cup a year earlier. At Arsenal he was playing at a team who were at the top of the league but at United he was playing at the bottom of the league and the club were eventually relegated. He went on to manage Arsenal to seven trophies in nine years, including two league titles and the UEFA cup winners cup.
Brian Kidd
The current Manchester City assistant manger played for Manchester United and Arsenal in the 1960s and 1970s. Kidd scored in the 1968 European Cup final for Manchester United on his 19th birthday, becoming one of the youngest players ever to score in a major European final. Following United's relegation in 1974, Kidd was sold to Arsenal for £110,000. In his debut season at Arsenal he was their top scorer.
Frank Stapleton
The Dublin born striker joined Arsenal as an apprentice in 1972, making his first team debut three years later against Stoke City. He quickly broke into the first team and formed a lethal strike partnership with Malcolm Macdonald, the pair would go on to score 46 goals between them in the 1976-77 season. At Arsenal, Stapleton played in three FA Cup finals, scoring the Arsenal's 1979 FA Cup win over Manchester United. After making 300 appearances for Arsenal and scoring 108 goals he joined Manchester United for £900,000. Stapleton went on to make over 360 appearances for United, and in 1983 he became the first man to score in two FA Cup finals with different clubs.
Robin Van Persie
Fast forward 30 years from the transfer of one superb striker to the transfer of another superb striker. In those 30 or so years Mikael Silvestre, Andy Cole and Viv Anderson had gone on to play for both Arsenal and Manchester United. But the next high profile move would come in 2012. At the beginning of the 2011-12 season a 28-year-old Dutchman called Robin van Persie was appointed Arsenal captain. His form that season was magnificent and he scored 30 Premier League goals. Then on 4th July 2012 he announced his intentions to leave Arsenal. A month later he was transferred to a Manchester United, despite interest from abroad, mainly Juventus, for £24 million. As Arsenal struggled to replace the once injury prone Dutchman, Van Persie was firing United to a record 20th league title.
Danny Welbeck
The most recent player to have moved from Manchester United to Arsenal was Mancunian Danny Welbeck, who moved to Arsenal on deadline day this year. The Manchester born forward had played for United for six years, making 142 appearances and scoring 29 goals. Welbeck, who had previously failed to prove his worth as a central striker and mainly played out on the left, has started to blossom at Arsenal scoring against Aston Villa and scoring a hat trick against Galatasaray. The England International will hope he can continue his goalscoring exploits against his old team.