The first of these fixtures was a Continental Tyres League Cup quarter-final clash.
Jonas Eidevall’s Arsenal side were competing in their 23rd game of the season, and were favourites to progress on home soil. They’d bagged 66 goals prior to that night, failing to score on just three occasions – two of which came against the sides that contested the last Champions League final, Barcelona and Chelsea.
What’s more, Arsenal had appeared in eight of the previous 10 Conti Cup finals, winning five of those.
To counter the Gunners' attacking threat, United head coach Marc Skinner brought in Maria Thorisdottir at right-back, with the more offensive-minded Ona Batlle starting on the bench under the floodlights of Meadow Park.