Ex-Man Utd ace who clashed with Sir Alex Ferguson will join Arsenal staff ahead of Old Trafford opener

Former Manchester United defender Gabriel Heinze may now be best known for his spat with Sir Alex Ferguson, but could now return to the Premier League.Manchester United appeared to strike gold with the signing of Gabriel Heinze back in 2004.United may have missed out on signing Ronaldinho in 2003, but did manage to raid Paris Saint-Germain for Heinze a year later.The Argentinian left-back made a huge impact at Old Trafford and won both the Players’ Player of the Year award and the Fans’ Player of the Year award in his debut season.A serious injury struck just a month into Heinze’s second season, keeping him out until the 2006-07 season, but Patrice Evra had made himself a star.READ MORE: Inside the life of Manchester United legend Sir Alex FergusonPhoto credit should read CARL DE SOUZA/AFP via Getty ImagesGabriel Heinze set for Premier League return with ArsenalUnited sold Heinze to Real Madrid in 2007, but only after some real drama – we will get to that shortly.Heinze turned out for Marseille, Roma and Newell’s Old Boys before hanging up his boots in 2014.Heinze turned to coaching and endured mixed fortunes across spells in charge of Godoy Cruz, Argentinos Juniors, Velez Sarsfield, Atlanta United and Newell’s Old Boys.Now 47, Heinze is set for his first coaching experience in the Premier League.The Athletic report that Heinze is joining Mikel Arteta’s coaching staff at Arsenal ahead of the new Premier League season.Arteta and Heinze previously played together at PSG and will now reunite at the Emirates Stadium.Arteta recently saw Carlos Cuesta leave Arsenal’s coaching staff to become the new manager of Italian side Parma.Heinze will now replace Cuesta, and will be in the dugout when the Gunners take on Ruben Amorim’s United on the opening day of the Premier League season.Gabriel Heinze’s clash with Sir Alex FergusonHeinze’s time at United turned a little sour in 2007.Evra’s rise to stardom left Heinze keen to move on, and he wanted to sign for United’s bitter rivals Liverpool.Rafa Benitez wanted to lure Heinze over to Anfield, but Sir Alex Ferguson was having absolutely none of it.“I can assure you, Liverpool will not be getting Gabriel Heinze,” said Ferguson, as quoted by Sky Sports.“We can put that to bed right now and we have done so. We have had a couple of offers for him and we have turned them down,” he added.That was far from the end of the matter, as Liverpool offered £6.8million for Heinze and believed that to be the price required for a deal.United still said no, with Ferguson standing firm on his refusal to sell anybody to Liverpool.Before you knew it, Heinze and his agent had taken the case to a Premier League arbitration in an attempt to force United to sell him.Heinze’s case was dismissed, United prevailed and then sold the defender, but to Real Madrid rather than Liverpool.Real paid less than what Liverpool offered for Heinze, but there was a flat-out refusal to deal with the Reds.Speaking in 2011, Heinze admitted his regret at the whole episode, admitting that he let his emotions get the better of him.“I don’t have many regrets from my career as a footballer, but that episode with Ferguson [has] to be one of them,” said Heinze, as quoted by The Guardian. “I’m impulsive and strong-willed and this has got me into trouble at times, which was the case when I left United.“I spent three years in Manchester and had some great moments and I regret it a lot. There are a lot of things I regret from the last months but I am a strong personality, Sir Alex is a strong personality. I took the decision and, looking back, I regret it because it meant leaving a great club and their supporters. I was aware of the rivalry [with Liverpool], I knew the risk of going from Manchester to Liverpool and what it means. I hope it doesn’t tarnish the way they [the supporters] see me and they will remember the three years I had in the team,” he added.Some United fans may not have forgiven Heinze nearly 20 years on, and there may be a mixed reception waiting for him when Arsenal visit Old Trafford in August.