Dating back to its inception in 1888, the English top flight — now known as the Premier League since the introduction of its new format in 1992 — has seen a number of prestigious teams engage in fierce battles. These fixtures also come with the history, the high-stakes games and a variety of contexts have helped to entrench these rivalries deep into the English football landscape.
Some of these are true classics, and GIVEMESPORT has decided to pay tribute to them by compiling a list of the 11 most hotly contested duels in the history of English football's elite. And it comes as no surprise that the list includes some of the most emblematic and decorated clubs in the English game.
11 Liverpool - Manchester United — 184 games
Record: 69-53-62
Manchester United and Liverpool players battle for the ball
Born at the dawn of the Industrial Revolution, the rivalry between the cities of Manchester and Liverpool, located 30 miles apart, was quickly transposed to the green rectangle. So much so that, over the years, it has become one of the most extreme in the country.
While the shared cultural history of the two frenemies from the north-west of England has led them to detest each other, the size and success of their football clubs has further fostered this feeling of enmity. And it's certainly not the Reds' recent title triumph — their 20th — that will help ease the tension.
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|Games Played|184|
|Record (Liverpool win - Draw - Man Utd win)|69-53-62|
Date of First Game 28th April 1894
10 Everton - Manchester City — 184 games
Record: 62-46-76
Everton's James Garner in action with Manchester City's Omar Marmoush
There may seem to be a gulf between the two teams today, but Everton and Manchester City share a rich history. However, the rivalry between them is nowhere near as fierce as some of those that followed. One reason for this is that their periods of success did not occur at the same time, which does not necessarily allow a great deal of enmity to emerge.
This is not to say that the two clubs have not played out tense encounters with far-reaching consequences (take, for example, the Toffees' draw with Skyblues, then in the running for the title, in the 2014/15 season), but rather that their ties remain at least cordial.
|Games Played|184|
|Record (Everton win - Draw - Man City win)|62-46-76|
Date of First Game 23rd December 1899
9 Arsenal - Aston Villa — 186 games
Record: 80-40-66
Arsenal's Kai Havertz clashes with Aston Villa's Emiliano Martinez
To define Arsenal and Aston Villa as genuine rivals would be a poor tribute to the real enmities that these two historic English champions have with others of their peers. The fact remains, however, that the two clubs, like each of their counterparts mentioned in this article, share a rich common history.
A legacy that memorable encounters, passionate supporters and transfer stories between the two clubs have done much to establish, and which the passing years only serve to maintain. All the more so as the standard of play between the two teams has become relatively close in recent seasons.
|Games Played|186|
|Record (Arsenal win - Draw - Aston Villa win)|80-40-66|
Date of First Game 8th October 1904
8 Everton - Manchester United — 192 games
Record: 59-47-86
Manchester United's Anthony Martial in action with Everton's Jarrad Branthwaite and Idrissa Gueye
Are you familiar with the saying that ‘the enemy of my enemy is my friend’? Well, the phrase seems more than apt to describe the existing relationship between Everton and Manchester United fans. Both known as Liverpool's greatest rivals, the two clubs from the north-west of England are nevertheless old ‘friends’.
In the league, there have been no fewer than 192 duels between the two clubs (215 in all competitions) since their first meeting in 1892, which the Toffees won 6-0, and which have enlivened the weekends of their two loyal fan communities. Enough for everyone to find their way around.
|Games Played|192|
|Record (Everton win - Draw - Man Utd win)|59-47-86|
Date of First Game 24th September 1892
7 Aston Villa - Liverpool — 194 games
Record: 56-43-95
Liverpool's Joel Matip battling Aston Villa's Ollie Watkins
While Aston Villa do not share a particularly strong rivalry with Liverpool, a number of their encounters have nonetheless gone down in history. Starting with the one won by the Villans in April 1992, in which a Tony Daley goal enabled them to end 11 years of Reds domination.
A statistic that alone illustrates the overall gap between the two teams, which has all too rarely been narrowed by the Birmingham side in its more than 100-year history. And it is not their current run of 10 games without a win (three draws, seven defeats) that will help to tip the balance.
|Games Played|194|
|Record (Aston Villa win - Draw - Liverpool win)|56-43-95|
Date of First Game 8th September 1894
6 Arsenal - Manchester City — 194 games
Record: 89-46-59
Arsenal's Martin Odegaard shakes hands with Manchester City's Erling Braut Haaland
The rivalry maintained between Arsenal and Manchester City may be steeped in the history of English football, but never has it been as intense as it has been since 2008, when the Abu Dhabi United Group took over the Mancunian club. A major turning point, amplified by the Londoners' gradual decline and their inability to compete for the league title.
And although the last few seasons have shown that Mikel Arteta's men are now ready to return to the top, they have yet to mount a real challenge to the Cityzens' domination of the domestic scene. All of which serves to exacerbate the tension between the two clubs.
|Games Played|194|
|Record (Arsenal win - Draw - Man City win)|89-46-59|
Date of First Game 11th November 1893
5 Arsenal - Liverpool — 202 games
Record: 67-56-79
MixCollage-30-Jul-2024-11-46-AM-4641
It seems impossible today to talk about the Arsenal-Liverpool rivalry in any other way than through the prism of that match on 26th May 1989. A match that English football has never forgotten — and certainly never will. For a thousand and one reasons.
On the one hand, because it was organised just a few weeks after the Hillsborough tragedy; on the other, because the Gunners had come to win the league title on the mythical Anfield pitch. The culmination of a war comprising over 200 battles, most of them won by the Reds. A conflict, yes, but a friendly one, made up of respect and sportsmanship, with many lines yet to be written.
|Games Played|202|
|Record (Arsenal win - Draw - Liverpool win)|67-56-79|
Date of First Game 28th October 1893
4 Arsenal - Everton — 208 games
Record: 102-45-61
Arsenal's Bukayo Saka in action with Everton's Jack Harrison
Far from being the most intense rivalry in British football, the one between Arsenal and Everton is nonetheless one of the most important. Or at least one of the most historic. The fact that the two clubs have played more than 100 seasons in the top flight is no small part of the reason for this.
A reputation that the history and the place occupied by the two clubs in the history of English football have served to consolidate. And although the winning tally favours Arsenal, facing the Toffees is never an easy task for the Gunners. Even less so when they have to travel to Goodison Park.
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|Games Played|208|
|Record (Arsenal win - Draw - Everton win)|102-45-61|
Date of First Game 5th April 1905
3 Everton - Liverpool — 212 games
Record: 59-70-83
The Merseyside Derby. One of the fiercest rivalries in world football, intense and long-standing as that between Everton and Liverpool.
A visceral hatred that came to the fore when the Toffees left Anfield Road, where they had been tenants until 1892, due to the desire of John Houlding, the club's chairman and founder of Liverpool FC, to apply a new economic policy contrary to that advocated by his board. This marked the start of a tense, antagonistic relationship between two of England's biggest clubs, which time has done nothing to bring closer together. And this despite the gap in standards that exists between them today.
|Games Played|212|
|Record (Everton win - Draw - Liverpool win)|59-70-83|
Date of First Game 13th October 1894
2 Arsenal - Manchester United — 212 games
Record: 77-50-85
Cristiano Ronaldo - Manchester United in action against Thierry Henry - Arsenal
The rivalry between Arsenal and Manchester United is as intense as it is ancient. But perhaps never was the rivalry quite as heated as it was in the late 1990s and early 2000s. A period marked by memorable clashes (such as the famous ‘Battle of Old Trafford’ in 2003) between two of the best teams in the Kingdom, in which Sir Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger joyfully took part.
Unfortunately, the slow decline of the two clubs in recent years has logically reduced the intensity and drama of their clashes, although a little could certainly rekindle the embers of a fire that many hope will one day blaze again.
|Games Played|212|
|Record (Arsenal win - Draw - Man Utd win)|77-50-85|
Date of First Game 13th October 1894