Arsenal vs Man Utd meetings could become great again but Amorim has lessons to learn from Arteta’s rise at the Emirates

A YOUNG, hungry, tactically astute boss arrives at a fallen English giant looking to recreate the glory years he enjoyed under a legendary, long-serving manager.

For Ruben Amorim, read Mikel Arteta five years ago.

Amorim will make his first appearance at the top of the table as Manchester United's new boss at the Emirates Stadium on Wednesday, and the man in the home dugout could set an excellent example for the Portuguese.

United versus Arsenal was the greatest rivalry of the Premier League era in the days of Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger, Roy Keane and Patrick Vieira, spitting in the tunnel before kick-off, spitting on the pitch and throwing pizza in the aftermath.

From Wenger's arrival in 1997 to his Invincibles campaign seven years later, there was a duopoly that defined the Premier League as it grew into a major global force.

But that was all more than twenty years ago. Since Wenger's long decline and Ferguson's departure, both clubs have endured wilderness years.

Could Arsenal-United finally become great again under Arteta and Amorim?

Arteta was fearless in sweeping away the past, courageously bombarding the deadly egos of Wenger's final years, such as Mesut Ozil and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.

The Spaniard went through some very tough times before rebuilding Arsenal in his own image, putting the team back in serious title contention two seasons ago.

Amorim will also have to do some hard yards. And at some point he will likely need from Sir Jim Ratcliffe & Co the kind of patience, bordering on blind faith, that the Kroenke regime offered Arteta during his early years in charge.

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United will not be rebuilt overnight. But there are lessons to be learned from Arteta's rise at the Emirates: bold decisions about the futures of older players, along with the courage to build a team around young talent and, above all, creating a real sense of unit.

United has been united in name only for years.

Amorim's commitment to a 3-4-3 system is an afterthought. The ability to develop a winning mentality and real chemistry within a team is much more important, as Arteta has proven.

Essentially, Arteta tore it apart and started again. Bukayo Saka is the only member of his initial 18-man matchday squad currently with the club.

Reiss Nelson, on loan at Fulham, is the only other player still on Arsenal's books having played in the 1-1 draw against Bournemouth in December 2019.

Taking stock of United's current squad – the lack of specialist full-backs, the absence of midfield dynamism or a compelling central forward – it is easy to imagine Amorim overseeing similar wholesale changes.

Amad Diallo, the standout player from Amorim's first three games, could well become his Saka.

Kobbie Mainoo, Alejandro Garnacho and new signing Leny Yoro – who could make his United debut on Wednesday – are all young enough and good enough to last the course.

But if Amorim is in charge of a successful United team in five years' time, Bruno Fernandes, Marcus Rashford, Harry Maguire, Casemiro, Christian Eriksen and many others could all be long gone.

There are many similarities between tonight's rival bosses, but also many differences.

When Arteta took over Arsenal at the age of 37, he had an in-depth knowledge of a club he had previously captained and a wealth of Premier League experience as a player and coach, but he had never managed a club before.

At 39, Amorim has five trophies in as many seasons as a manager in his home country with Braga and Sporting, but has no previous experience of playing or managing in any of Europe's big five leagues.

What Arteta and Amorim have in common, however, is the personality required to take on such big jobs.

After a friendly introduction to his new job against Ipswich, Bodo-Glimt and Everton, Amorim will tomorrow be the first real benchmark for the overpriced, underperforming side he inherited from Erik ten Hag.

Sunday's 4-0 win over Everton was his first truly encouraging result, but behind the scoreline was a blisteringly average performance.

Arsenal, meanwhile, with Martin Odegaard back in charge, have scored 13 goals in three successive wins, including five goals in successive away games.

To some extent, Arteta's Arsenal is what Amorim's United hopes to be.

Yet the Gunners have not won a major trophy for four full seasons.

Which once again underlines the magnitude of the task facing Amorim.