It is a long time since Premier League clashes between the old adversaries in April were often "title deciders" with the only real significance of the outcome of Sunday's match being its effect on Arsenal's chances of finishing in the top four.
Arsenal's title challenge effectively ended last August when top goalscorer Robin van Persie was sold to United and they replaced him with Frenchman Olivier Giroud who will be suspended for a match his side dare not lose.
After a recent lull, his dazzling display against Villa made him favourite to end the season as the league's top scorer for a second consecutive campaign.
The personality clash between Wenger and United manager Sir Alex Ferguson fanned the flames and things regularly combusted on the pitch, and off it as was the case when Arsenal's players hurled pizza at their rivals after one particularly feisty encounter.
From the 1997/98 season, when Wenger's Arsenal won the title, to United's triumph in 2002/03, the two sides finished first and second on five occasions.
First Chelsea, and now Man City, have replaced Arsenal as the main challengers to Ferguson's Old Trafford empire, but the sight of Wenger and Ferguson in opposing dugouts is still pure box office for the Premier League.
The return of Van Persie, who is bizarrely omitted from the "50 Greatest Players" section on Arsenal's website despite scoring 132 goals, will spice up the atmosphere even further.
A home game against Swansea, Michael Laudrup's eye-catching side who are safe in mid-table, looks like the ideal fixture for Chelsea after their midweek exertions in the Europa League.
