News from Man Utd: "Patrick Vieira got away with murder and Emmanuel Petit had long hair" – Ryan Giggs reveals his hatred for Arsenal

Ryan Giggs revealed that the intensity of the rivalry between Manchester United and Arsenal has led to irrationally hating several players of their worst enemy.

Sir Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger competed to win the highest honors of the game in a memorable heads-up duel after the Frenchman arrived in England in October 1996.

But in the 1998-99 campaign, United claimed a Premier League double, before adding the Champions League after a spectacular win over Bayern Munich at Camp Nou.

The victory over Arsenal in the FA Cup semifinal at Villa Park propelled United's race to triple. Giggs has undoubtedly scored the most important goal with a great race across the North Londoners' defense.

Normally calm and considered, Giggs admits having had to adopt a totally different personality against Wenger 's side and have a particular hatred for four opposition players, including some Invincible team members.

"I did not like Arsenal," said Giggs the daily mail. "I did not like Vieira because he was dirty and he was getting away with murder, I did not like Little because he had long hair, I did not like Bergkamp.

"I did not like Pires even though, when you meet him now, he's really very nice, I would not even look at them, I did not know them and I did not want to, I would not allow myself to evaluate them.

"Bergkamp? Nah, I told myself that he was not as good as Eric Cantona.I was not really that kind of person.

"It was not really me, but you had to keep that in your head, this intense dislike, it was pure motivation.

"But deep down we knew it, they were very talented and that rivalry was all for us, even deeper than Liverpool at that time."

Although the 1999 final against Bayern remains one of Giggs' finest successes as a professional, it was a rather frustrating night for the wingman who started the match out of position on the right.

The suspension of Roy Keane and Paul Scholes forced Ferguson to a reshuffle. David Beckham moved to the center and Jesper Blomqvist unfurled into the privileged position of Giggs on the left.

Despite a frustrating evening until the late goals of Teddy Sheringham and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, the current Wales manager says that he always thought that a comeback was possible .

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"There is a bit of me – and I do not think I've said it before – who thought I should have played at the center," he added.

"It was between me and Becks and I felt that I could have changed it further.I was a little" I'm in the wrong position here ".But it's not a excuse We knew we could write the story or fail and with 10 minutes going I just thought it was gone.

"I always had the habit of saying that we would have a chance, but in that one, we were so bad that there was nothing there." I was really in. I knew I would have to face my friends and I wondered if I would ever be there again. "