when it comes to the fa cup, manchester united have edged barclays premier league rivals arsenal in recent years, winning three of their last five meetings this year, the pair have been pitted against each other once again, in the quarter finals   the difference this time being that sir alex ferguson will not be in charge of united can arsenal, the current holders, balance the scales and reach the last four? manchester united will face arsenal in the fa cup for the first time since sir alex ferguson's (right) retirement  manchester united 0 arsenal 2   fa cup fifth round, february 2003  goals either side of half time saw arsenal bag a comfortable win over their top flight rivals edu opened the scoring for the gunners in the 34th minute with a free kick which deflected off the shoulder of david beckham and wrong footed fabien barthez the visitors struck another blow to united's comeback hopes when sylvain wiltord took the ball around wes brown before converting a well placed shot for arsenal's second in the 52nd minute, putting the game out of reach manchester united striker ruud van nistelrooy (left) tussles with arsenal midfielder patrick vieira (right) arsenal forward sylvain wiltord (left) is congratulated by team mates after scoring his side's second goal  manchester united winger ryan giggs has an attempt at goal during the fa cup fifth round in 2004  arsenal 0 manchester united 1   fa cup semi final, april 2004  united secured their place in the final by beating arsenal at villa park, where paul scholes fired home the only goal it came just after half an hour when ryan giggs squared a ball in from the right to an unmarked scholes, whose fierce shot sailed past jens lehmann arsenal did have their chances, however, with edu and patrick vieira both hitting the woodwork and frequently forcing roy carroll into action the defeat ended the gunners' 18 match unbeaten fa cup run, which stretched back to their 2001 defeat to liverpool in the final united playmaker paul scholes (centre) scores the only goal as his side beat arsenal in the fa cup semi final  united winger cristiano ronaldo (left) is brought down by arsenal defender gael clichy (right) arsenal 0 manchester united 0 (arsenal win 5 4 on penalties)   fa cup final, may 2005  arsenal held on for a goalless draw after a dominant manchester united performance in the wembley final, which the gunners went on to win 5 4 on penalties united were unable to beat in form goalkeeper lehmann, who made crucial saves throughout before saving scholes' penalty to clinch the cup united came close with chances from wayne rooney, who hit the post, and ruud van nistlerooy, whose effort was deflected onto the bar by freddie ljungberg come the shoot out, arsenal, who had jose antonio reyes sent off in the final minute of extra time, maintained their composure and scored all five penalties, the fifth converted by vieira arsenal full back lauren (left) goes to challenge ronaldo during the fa cup final in 2005  patrick vieira holds the fa cup trophy after arsenal beat manchester united on penalties in 2005  arsenal goalkeeper dives to make a stunning save from paul scholes during the 2005 final shoot out  manchester united 4 arsenal 0   fa cup fifth round, february 2008  a dominant first half performance saw manchester united ease to victory over arsenal in the fifth round united were 3 0 up by half time thanks to headed efforts by rooney and darren fletcher which effectively put the game out of reach after 20 minutes, with nani netting a third just before the break the gunners' luck worsened shortly after the restart when emmanuel eboue was sent off for a foul on patrice evra, ruling out any glimmer of a comeback the match was finally put to bed in the 74th minute when fletcher headed in his second and united's fourth manchester united striker wayne rooney (centre) loses his man to open the scoring against arsenal in 2008  manchester united's south korean midfielder ji sung park (right) crosses the ball past justin hoyte (left) united midfielder darren fletcher (right) scores his second and his side's fourth goal against arsenal  manchester united 2 arsenal 0   fa cup quarter final, march 2011  united secured a comfortable win over arsenal in the last eight, silencing a few of ferguson's critics the veteran scottish manager had come under pressure prior to the game thanks to league defeats at liverpool and chelsea, resulting in a drastic squad reshuffle which saw seven defenders start against the gunners united went in at half time 1 0 up thanks to fabio's goal, with rooney putting the game out of reach at the start of the second half arsenal's fa cup exit came shortly after they had lost to birmingham in the league cup final, and to barcelona in the champions league fabio da silva of manchester united (right) shields the ball away from the incoming challenge of denilson (left) paul scholes (centre) angrily confronts arsenal striker marouane chamakh (right) back in 2011  wayne rooney (right) is congratulated by team mates rafael (left) and javier hernandez (top)
manchester united arsenal the fa cup quarter finals this year united cup 2005
manchester united will play arsenal in the fa cup quarter finals this year . united have won three of their last five meetings in the cup . arsenal have not beaten united in the cup since the final in 2005 