FA ponder early summit
The FA had originally resolved to delay the clear-the-air talks, with Arsene Wenger still facing a misconduct charge for calling Ruud van Nistelrooy a "cheat."
But while Arsenal have privately insisted there is little need for a meeting, some leading FA figures believe one must be held before the Carling Cup fifth round encounter on December 1.
One Arsenal source yesterday argued that "the healing process has already begun, and there should be no repeat of what happened because the clubs know their responsibilities."
But the onus is now on FA chairman Geoff Thompson to ensure there is no pre-match animosity this time.
Therefore Arsenal vice-chairman David Dein and United chief executive David Gill may yet be invited to a meeting by the FA before the end of this month.
Responsibility nevertheless ultimately lies with Wenger and Ferguson to defuse tensions, with the Arsenal boss yet to decide whether to defend his accusation against van Nistelrooy at a personal hearing.
John Barnwell, chief executive of the League Managers' Association, said: "This draw is a great opportunity to heal the wounds. If you don't face up to these issues then they can be allowed to fester."
There seems little chance the match will be contested by full-strength sides, Wenger having said it "would be criminal" to drop his youngsters after their victory against Everton - while Ferguson insists "we will play the same squad as against Crystal Palace and give it a real go."
The United boss was angered two years ago when he thought the two clubs had come to an agreement to play virtual youth teams in a Worthington Cup third-round tie.
As a result, the game was scheduled just 24 hours after United's first team had played - only for Arsenal to field a rather more experienced line-up than Ferguson had anticipated. Arsenal duly won 4-0, with Sylvain Wiltord scoring a hat-trick.
Meanwhile, Robert Pires insisted that there is "no need for alarm" over their recent loss of form as he warned Chelsea of the Gunners' steadfast determination to defend their title.
Indeed, Tottenham were left to fear a backlash this weekend as Arsenal look to end to their run of five games without a victory.
"You can be sure of nothing - except that we have the determination to win the league again. Although Chelsea have taken over at the top, it is not a great concern at this stage of the season," he insisted.
"The squad is the strongest I have known since I came here. We have cover all over the team and everyone saw how good the young players are in the Carling Cup matches against Manchester City and Everton. Although people have said we were affected mentally by losing to Manchester United, I do not think that was the case.
"I think we were affected physically by playing two games a week. That gave us little time to recuperate. Now we have a couple of weeks when we only play at the weekends and that will help."
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