Man Utd v Arsenal

Arsene Wenger opted for pace as he looked to confirm Arsenal’s supposed superiority over Manchester United back at the Old Trafford venue where his side clinched the title last season.

Wenger left Dennis Bergkamp on the bench and restored Sylvain Wiltord, who scored the winner last season, to the side, while also replacing Kolo Toure with Fredrik Ljungberg.

Martin Keown was fit to make his first start since September following a hamstring injury, replacing the suspended Sol Campbell at the heart of the defending champions’ defence.

Rami Shaaban, meanwhile, replaced the injured David Seaman in goal, with Ashley Cole returning from a knock at left-back but Lauren only making it as far as the bench.

United made two changes to the line-up which defeated Liverpool 2-1 at Anfield last weekend to reignite their own title challenge.

Quinton Fortune’s broken leg, revealed by Sir Alex Ferguson just before the game, meant Phil Neville came back, while Juan Sebastian Veron returned after flu to replace Diego Forlan despite his double strike at Anfield.