Darren Ferguson says there is "an enormous amount of respect" between his father, Sir Alex, and Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger.
The two shared a heated rivalry before Ferguson senior retired as manager of Manchester United in 2013. The then United boss labelled Wenger a "novice" when he first arrived in England, advising the new Arsenal manager to "keep his opinions to Japanese football" following his move from J-League side Nagoya Grampus Eight.
And after Arsenal's title win in 2002, Ferguson claimed his Manchester United side were better, prompting Wenger to respond: "Everybody thinks they have the prettiest wife at home".
The pair's relationship mellowed as matches between the two clubs lost their competitive edge and Arsenal failed to launch a genuine title challenge towards the end of Ferguson's Manchester United reign.
Since retirement, the two have grown closer still. Wenger said last year he would happily share "a good glass of red wine" with Ferguson, and the latter's son has now expanded further on their relationship.
“There's an enormous amount of respect between my dad and Arsene Wenger,” he told Sky Sports. “A huge amount of respect, they get on very, very well.
“Listen, they were competitive, both of them. They had to have that sort of competitive edge towards it when they were managing but I'm looking forward to coming up against him.
Arsenal training on 19th September 2017 - In pictures
“He [Wenger] is a great manager and obviously the aim is to get one over him but we know it is going to be difficult.”
