Arsenal stars went at each other like beasts in practice – ‘No one managed to pull them apart.’

David Bentley has lifted the lid on the fierce environment at Arsenal during his early career, revealing that even teammates struggled to separate a ferocious fight between Kolo Toure and Pascal Cygan.

The ex-England midfielder, who played just nine times for the Gunners before moving to Blackburn in 2006, was part of Arsène Wenger’s iconic Invincibles squad. Though he barely featured, Bentley says training sessions were so competitive that players often left bloodied.

Speaking on the Undr The Cosh podcast, he described the physicality within the squad: “Every day was a battle. Ray Parlour loved it. Martin Keown was a warrior. Even Bergkamp was ruthless—he kicked lumps out of everyone. I’d go up against Van Bronckhorst and come away with black eyes and cuts.”

But the clash that stood out most was a showdown between Cygan and Toure: “The two of them went at it like animals. It was the best fight I’ve ever seen on a training pitch. The whole squad tried to step in, but no one could stop it.”

Bentley, just 19 at the time, wasn’t afraid to test his limits—he even squared up to Thierry Henry during one of the fiercely competitive seven-a-side games. “I threw my gloves off and went, ‘Come on then.’ Honestly, those little games mattered more to us than the matches at the weekend.”

Not all of Bentley’s bravado was well-received, however. On a pre-season camp in Austria, he joked around at the French players’ table and unknowingly sat in Patrick Vieira’s seat. “Next thing, bang—I got slapped. Vieira told me to get out of his seat. For months after that, I wasn’t invited on nights out. In training, he smashed me every day,” Bentley recalled.

Despite the rough treatment, Bentley says he thrived off the challenge and has since built a strong friendship with Vieira. Looking back, he insists those battles defined the spirit of Wenger’s legendary Arsenal side.