Manchester United vs Liverpool is no match for the biggest rivalry in Britain, and Arsenal vs Tottenham isn't even in the top five.
The Old Firm derby is the biggest rivalry in Britain; all the others are very far from the intensity.
Manchester United travel to Liverpool on Sunday in what is often considered Britain's most famous clash.
But according to talkSPORT presenter and former Aston Villa striker Gabby Agbonlahor, Celtic vs Rangers is the biggest and most compelling rivalry, while the north London derby doesn't even feature in her top five list.
“The biggest derby is Rangers/Celtic,” he told talkSPORT in April 2024. “It's on my bucket list to go see. When you watch it on TV you can feel the adrenaline of watching the game.”
“You can feel the atmosphere of the fans, you can see that the two teams don't like each other. It's a very, very big derby. For me, the biggest in Great Britain by far.
“Some of the other ones… Manchester United vs Manchester City, they're not really for me.
“Manchester United/Liverpool: yes, there is a rivalry, but nowadays the players shake hands.”
No one can deny the rivalry between Rangers and Celtic, which has become deeply embedded in Scottish football culture.
It's not the first time the rivalry turned ugly on Thursday when Celtic's Arne Engels was hit with a coin released by a Rangers fan.
As they are the two biggest teams in the country with a large fan base, the pair often fight over the league and cups, although they cannot be separated.
And it should come as no surprise that Villa icon Agbonlahor says the Birmingham derby is the most important game in England.
“There is a real hatred between both fans,” he explained.
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“We always knew we would beat Birmingham City and we knew how much it meant to the fans.
“Even if you've had four or five bad games, you go and beat Birmingham City in the Premier League and it's like they forgive you for those bad performances.
“A huge, huge derby. It gets very heated. You see the incident with Jack Grealish (attacked by a fan), something you don't really see in English football. It just shows the hatred between both clubs.”
In addition to the North London derby between Arsenal and Tottenham, the Merseyside derby between Liverpool and Everton and, interestingly, the M63 derby between Crystal Palace and Brighton are other closely contested matches in England.
“Brighton-Crystal Palace? Aren't there about 100 miles between them? When I see them, I don't understand this,” Agbonlahor added.
“I feel like Everton Liverpool, you see Everton fans on the same extreme as Liverpool fans. That would never happen between Birmingham City and Aston Villa.”
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But none of them made it into Agbonlahor's top five.
Gabby's five biggest rivalries in Britain
1. Rangers vs Celtic (Old Firm derby)
“I think it (the Old Firm derby) is my number one since I watched it as a kid. The days of Henrik Larrson (at Celtic) and Brian Laudrup (at Rangers).
“Obviously there are other things that I won't go into in detail about that game that make it more aggressive.”
2. Aston Villa vs Birmingham City (second city derby)
“People might tell me 'oh, it's because it's from Birmingham', but when I see these other derbies and hear about them, they don't compare to Birmingham/Villa.
“I've played in them, you feel that adrenaline, you feel that atmosphere.
“You're at the coach on the way to the game and they throw rocks and rocks at you and the players hide under the tables.”
3. Liverpool vs Manchester United (northwest derby)
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“I'm probably going to go between Manchester United and Liverpool for number three because of their history.
“Liverpool won so many leagues and then United took over, a similar amount of league titles.”
4. West Ham vs Millwall (Dockers derby)
“I'll go with West Ham/Millwall for fourth place.
“That's a great derby, Millwall are famous for having that fan base, the signatures. West Ham aren't soft either.”
5. Chelsea vs Tottenham (London derby)
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“To finish, then I would say Spurs/Chelsea. Not Spurs vs Arsenal.
“The reason is that, to me, the north London derby doesn't seem so important anymore.
“Spurs vs Chelsea looks bigger because of the Battle of the Bridge. But the players will still shake hands.”
