'I love Pep - it's out of my hands if someone wants to damage that'

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has played down speech of a feud with Manchester City brag Pep Guardiola, saying helium "loves" his erstwhile workfellow and cannot power attempts to "damage" their friendship.

Speaking connected Friday earlier City's travel to Newcastle, Guardiola said helium had been provoked into a "war" with Arsenal pursuing past Sunday’s action-packed 2-2 draw betwixt the teams astatine Etihad Stadium.

Arteta, responding to accusations from respective City players of employing 'dark arts' to support a 2-1 second-half lead, told reporters connected Tuesday that helium had "all the information" connected them pursuing his three-and-a-half twelvemonth spell arsenic Guardiola's adjunct - comments which besides upset the City boss.

"I've admired him since I was 10 years old," Arteta said connected Saturday. "I respect him profoundly. I'm truthful grateful for everything helium did for maine and continues to bash for me.

"If idiosyncratic wants to harm the relationship, that's not successful my hands. The feeling [of affection] is profound. [Guardiola] knows it, the unit cognize it due to the fact that I inactive [speak] with them today, and with the board, the ownership – with everyone."

Arteta's latest comments came aft his broadside scored doubly successful stoppage clip to gain a dramatic 4-2 triumph astatine location to Leicester.

"The affirmative vigor is feeding retired of the nine astatine the moment," erstwhile Arsenal winger Theo Walcott told Final Score. "It is adjacent bigger to get the triumph due to the fact that Man City dropped points [at Newcastle] today.

"In my clip [at Arsenal], determination was an constituent of: 'Can we bash it?' What Mikel has instilled is that content that they volition bash it."

After the verbal jousting betwixt Arteta and Guardiola this week, BBC Sport takes a look astatine immoderate of the Premier League’s different large managerial rivalries down the years.

This epic rivalry began successful Spain, coming to a caput erstwhile Guardiola's Barcelona took connected Mourinho's Real Madrid successful the 2011 Champions League semi-final.

Mourinho accused Guardiola of criticising referees, to which Guardiola delivered an expletive-laden response. "Off the pitch, helium has already won. I grant him a Champions League trophy for victories successful the property room," helium added.

The 2 managers locked horns again successful the Premier League portion Mourinho was successful complaint of Manchester United, with Guardiola’s City winning 3 of the teams' six meetings during the Portuguese's Old Trafford tenure.

Mourinho's squad were City's closest pursuers successful 2017-18 arsenic they finished 2nd - but helium was sacked aft a mediocre commencement to the pursuing campaign.

Never 1 to clasp backmost post-match - peculiarly if his squad had conscionable been beaten - Mourinho exchanged words with Conte moments aft a humiliating 4-0 decision connected his instrumentality to Stamford Bridge with Manchester United successful October 2016, seemingly unhappy with the Italian's celebrations towards the extremity of the game.

The pursuing season, Mourinho accused immoderate of his managerial rivals of "acting similar clowns" connected the touchline - successful an evident excavation astatine Conte and Liverpool brag Jurgen Klopp.

Conte responded by reminding Mourinho of his ain misdemeanours during his managerial career. He took things a measurement further successful 2018, calling the Portuguese "a small man" and "fake".

Rafael Benitez's Liverpool were apical of the Premier League successful aboriginal 2009 but Sir Alex Ferguson's United were blistery connected their heels successful second.

Benitez appeared to ace nether the unit during a bizarre property league successful January, during which the Spaniard produced a database of "facts" relating to Ferguson's evident power implicit lucifer officials and the shot authorities.

Ferguson's team, arsenic they truthful often did, would travel retired connected apical astatine the extremity of the campaign, finishing 4 points up of Liverpool.

He aboriginal wrote successful his autobiography: "The mistake [Benitez] made was to crook our rivalry personal. Once you made it personal, you had nary chance. I had occurrence connected my side."

In stylistic terms, Arsenal and Bolton were astatine other ends of the shot spectrum successful the mid 2000s - the Gunners were free-flowing and fluid, the Trotters were carnal and direct.

However, Arsenal won lone 1 of their 8 matches against Bolton betwixt September 2004 and February 2007, with Allardyce's broadside victorious successful 4 of those games. The rivalry continued during Allardyce's clip astatine Blackburn.

In his autobiography, Allardyce wrote: "I enjoyed beating Arsenal much than anyone erstwhile I was successful complaint astatine Bolton. We’d truly got to them and Arsene Wenger hated us."

Speaking successful December 2016, Wenger admitted that a 2-2 gully astatine Bolton successful 2003 - which outgo the Gunners dearly successful the rubric contention - inactive wounded him, saying: "You person awkward moments and you ne'er hide them. It's a scar connected your heart."

Bold, brash, backed by Roman Abramovich's millions and - successful his ain words - "special", Mourinho was ever apt to win astatine Stamford Bridge aft arriving successful June 2004.

There ever seemed to beryllium a communal respect betwixt Mourinho and Ferguson - little truthful betwixt the Portuguese and Wenger.

Branded a "voyeur" by Mourinho aft criticising his antagonistic tactics successful 2005, Wenger said the Chelsea brag was "out of order" and "disconnected with reality".

The feud continued erstwhile Mourinho returned for a 2nd spell astatine Stamford Bridge successful 2013, with the Portuguese calling Wenger a "specialist successful failure". In 2014, the brace had to beryllium separated connected the touchline during a heated brushwood betwixt the 2 London rivals.

The Premier League was dominated by Manchester United and Arsenal successful the precocious 1990s and aboriginal 2000s, with the 2 teams winning each rubric betwixt 1996 and 2004.

English shot fans knew small astir Wenger anterior to his assignment arsenic Arsenal manager successful October 1996, but the Frenchman was speedy to marque an content - and ruffle 1 oregon 2 feathers among his rivals.

After Wenger had suggested that a regularisation alteration to the fixture scheduling would payment United, a furious Ferguson retorted: "He has nary acquisition of English football. He has travel from Japan and present helium is telling america however to organise our football.

"Unless you person been successful the concern and had the experience, past helium should support his rima unopen - firmly shut."

Having held a 12-point pb implicit Manchester United successful January 1996, Kevin Keegan's Newcastle were being chased down by Ferguson's relentless Red Devils during the 2nd fractional of the campaign.

As the play entered its last straight, Ferguson suggested that Leeds and Nottingham Forest - 2 of Newcastle’s last 3 opponents - would not effort arsenic hard against the Magpies arsenic they would against his ain team.

Keegan snapped, telling Sky Sports aft his team's triumph implicit Leeds: "[Ferguson] went down successful my estimation erstwhile helium said that. I'd emotion it if we bushed them – emotion it."

United would extremity the play 4 points wide of Keegan's team.