Rare alliance of Ferguson and Wenger over fixture congestion

This Afternoon, Manchester United play one of the most glamorous and significant fixtures of a season which has already dragged through six long months since it opened with a defeat in Budapest. If the club achieves all its aims, there could be 24 more.

United are in the midst of what could be the longest and most extraordinary season in the history of English domestic football. Still involved in all four major competitions, they could if they reach the European Cup final on their own Old Trafford ground, have played 68 competitive matches, in a period stretching from 13 August to 28 May. It will be the last time such a total will be possible; next season the Champions' League reverts to a knock-out after the first group stage.

Four seasons ago, Ferguson's troops hauled their way through 62 matches to finish with a unique treble. Their manager believed that the plethora of fixtures in April and May actually helped United achieve their goals, preventing his players dwelling too long on the enormity of what they were about to achieve.

Seasons of extreme endurance generally end in a weary triumph. Liverpool, whose 66 competitive games in 1983-84 which finished in a successful penalty shoot-out in the European Cup final in Rome is still a modern record. The exception to the rule was Don Revie's Leeds United, whose own treble ambitions perished in two cup final defeats, to Sunderland and Milan.

When asked if he would welcome a replay should their FA Cup tie against Arsenal finish level, Sir Alex Ferguson's reaction was emphatic: "God no," he said. "Neither side will want a replay."

At Arsenal's training ground at London Colney, Arsène Wenger was talking of the need to scrap FA Cup replays entirely and, should this game be drawn, organising one would involve moving Manchester United's home game with Leeds on 5 March, which has already been shifted once. There are no other available dates.

Wenger and Ferguson are not natural allies, but faced with criticism from the Football Association that their attitude towards friendly internationals has damaged England's cause, they have made firm common ground.

The Manchester United manager cited the case of Arsenal's midfielder, Gilberto Silva, who arrived back at his club on yesterday morning after playing for Brazil in China. "You can't blame the players, you can't blame the international coaches, you have to blame the associations," he said. "The game between Brazil and China is a perfect illustration. You play on a Wednesday night in China, Gilberto Silva has to travel back in a journey that must be at least 13 hours. I don't see why they couldn't have had the internationals on Tuesday night. Timing internationals around European fixtures make it impossible for the clubs."

Arsenal, Manchester United and, to a lesser extent, Liverpool and Chelsea have argued consistently that fixture congestion means the size of the Premiership should be reduced, but they acknowledge a hypocrisy in their arguments. When Uefa proposed to cut out the second group stage of the Champions' League next season, Arsenal, Manchester United and many of Europe's leading clubs opposed it. "You are going to get that greed. The necessity of sending players out to earn money is always going to be paramount in a club perspective," Ferguson admitted.

"It is a question of money," said Wenger, who watched France's international on Wednesday and brought his Arsenal players back to London on a private plane. "We want to survive, the financial situation of all the clubs in Europe is not the best. Why do they play friendly internationals? They need the money, if it were a question of games, they could play behind closed doors."

Wenger reckoned that players in Arsenal's situation would give perhaps "five per cent less commitment" in a friendly "and this you can understand". He added that he was not especially popular with the French either before giving a graphic example of the strains of combining international and domestic football.

"My players returned at 10.15pm on Sunday night from Newcastle. On Monday at 6am they got up to travel to Paris and when they arrive they practice in the afternoon. Tuesday, they get up early and have all the tests, in the afternoon they practise. Wednesday they play and then they travel back."

That gives them one meaningful day to prepare for Old Trafford, still English football's most daunting venue.