Arsene Wenger and David Seaman claim Gary Neville lunchtime spying 'killed' Arsenal

Arsene Wenger and David Seaman have opened up about how Manchester United legend Gary Neville "spied" on the Arsenal team in the early 2000s.

The rivalry between the two sides was at his absolute peak when Sir Alex Ferguson and Wenger were at the helm. From Between the 1997/98 and 2003/2004 campaigns, Arsenal and United were the dominant sides and there was only two occasions where they weren't the top two.

Wenger took the reins at Arsenal in 1996 and had a huge impact on sports science and nutrition in English football.

Chocolate was banned, while burgers and chips were taken off the menu. Apple pie was still allowed but custard was nixed.

Arsenal's Dr John Crane was at the heart of everything and was in charge of the players' specialised diets. However, he also had a role within the England set-up and Gary Neville caught wind of what the Arsenal players were consuming on international duty.

Image: Getty

Wenger and Seaman discussed Neville's snooping during an episode of his 'Seaman Says' podcast.

"When you came you were so far ahead, you were so far ahead of everyone at every other club," Seaman told his former manager.

"I remember one instance where we were on England duty and Doc Crane was our doctor at Arsenal, but he was also the England doctor.

"We went to England and we were on our special diet. We were eating it and, I'll always remember this boss, Gary Neville looked over to our table and was like 'What are they eating over there? Why aren't they eating the same as us? We're a team! We should be eating the same!'

"So that's how he found out about what we were eating and then he took it back to Man United."

Image: Getty

Wenger added: "They copied us! The English national team killed us!"

Wenger won three Premier League titles with Arsenal, including the incredible 'Invincibles' season in 2003/04.

However, he feels as though that undefeated campaign overshadows the 2001/02 double win, of which Seaman was a key part of.

"We won the championship at Man United. [Beating] Chelsea in the [FA Cup] final, Chelsea already had a great team, and it was an exceptional performance. And this season doesn't get the credit it deserves."

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