I was fined £43,000 and given lengthy ban for role in Battle of Old Trafford, but I would do it all again
It may be 20 years on from the infamous Battle of Old Trafford clash — but Arsenal Invincible Lauren has no regrets over his actions.
In one of the most fiery Premier League matches of all time, the Gunners held Manchester United to a 0-0 draw on 21 September, 2003.
And despite the fixture ending goalless, it had everything — a red card, missed penalty and a full-time bust-up earning Arsenal a record £175,000 FA fine.
Arsenal and United were once again the two teams vying for the Premier League title, with the north Londoners going the 2003/04 campaign unbeaten.
But things could have been so different had Ruud van Nistelrooy converted his last-gasp spot-kick instead of smashing it against the bar.
The Red Devils icon was already public enemy No.1 in the eyes of the Arsenal players after they had felt his dramatic reaction from a Patrick Vieira kick-out led to his sending off.
So when the final whistle immediately blew after the Dutchman missed, it sparked an angry reaction from Arsene Wenger's men.
Martin Keown, who had given away the penalty for hauling Van Nistelrooy down as he looked to get on the end of a Gary Neville cross, proceeded to jump on the player and screech in his face.
Lauren, who was charged by the FA along with Keown, Vieira and Ray Parlour, received the biggest fine and ban over his actions.
The Cameroonian was seen shoving Van Nistelrooy, kicking out at Quinton Fortune as well as grabbing Phil Neville by the throat.
He was slapped with a £43k fine and handed a lengthy ban after being charged on counts of violent and improper conduct.
But was it worth it? Absolutely.
That is according to the Arsenal legend himself, who was speaking to talkSPORT.com about the incident.
Asked whether he regrets his animated actions,
Read on talksport.com
