The rivalry between Manchester United and Arsenal is renowned for being feisty but it appears the tension spread from the pitch to the stands during their pre-season friendly Saturday night.
The Gunners fell to a 2-0 defeat to the Red Devils at the MetLife Stadium as they continued their pre-season tour Stateside after a 5-0 trouncing of the MLS All-Stars earlier in the week.
It was a physical encounter, typical of the fierce rivalry that has existed between the two sides, but the tension also appeared to boil over in the crowd.
In video taken by Mail Sport’s Chris Wheeler, supporters could be seen brawling in the stands of the New Jersey stadium during the matchup.
While it is unclear what triggered the fight, a group of fans in the stairway separating the rows of seats could be seen shoving each other before the situation escalated a one began throwing punches.
Two members of security staff clambered over the pitchside railings separating the stands from the on-field action and began to make their way up towards the bickering supporters.
Before they could get there, however, a couple of other fans managed to intervene and deescalated the situation.
The supporter in a blue jersey who threw the first punch, backed off and calmly made his way back to his seat in the row across. There didn’t appear to be any more trouble.
The tensions were just as high on the field too. A late challenge from Lisandro Martinez on Bukayo Saka caused tempers to flare in the States, resulting in a mini scuffle until the Argentina star was separated from Gunner captain Martin Odegaard.
Footage shows Martinez lunging in on Saka in the United half as the game moved towards half time in the game.
United were already 2-0 up but the center back, known for his aggressive nature, was taking no prisoners and went in high on the England forward.
As he almost took out teammate Kobbie Mainoo too, the referee blew for a free-kick, booking Martinez for the challenge, though the 25-year-old was unfazed.
Odegaard was on the scene to confront his opponent, before several other players rushed over to get involved.
The likes of Mason Mount, William Saliba and Luke Shaw all approached the scene, but matters eventually calmed down.
The game saw three yellow cards overall, with Harry Maguire booked for Manchester United and Gabriel Jesus also picking up a yellow in the game.
United will also play Wrexham, Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund while in the States, with the Gunners set to face Barcelona on Thursday morning after already beating an MLS All-Star side.
Source: Daily Mail
