A tale of two stories is what the Manchester derby has come to be. Manchester United won countless trophies in the 1990s and 2000s under one of the greatest managers of all time, Sir Alex Ferguson. Manchester City, on the other hand, had a different upbringing. After some success in the 1960s and 1970s, the city experienced a rapid decline in the following decades. As United won titles, City struggled to stay in the top division. However, that all changed in 2008 when Sheikh Mansour’s Abu Dhabi United Group (ADUG) bought 90 percent of Manchester City, leading to a massive influx of investment and the creation of the Premier League modern dynasty.
Going into another rivalry week, City is fighting for their sixth title in seven years. While the Red Devils are sitting in sixth place, they are looking for a European competition qualification spot. English international and United winger Marcus Rashford opened up the scoring with a long-range shot, hitting it right past Brazilian international Ederson in goal. In the past few weeks, Rashford has been questioned about his loyalty to United.
“I grew up here. I have played for this club since I was a boy. My family turned down life-changing money when I was a kid so I could wear this badge,” Rashford said to The Players Tribune.
On the other side of the pitch, after going down 1-0 to United, City in the second half came out on fire and scored three straight to ultimately win the match 3-1. City homegrown Phil Foden scored his version of Rashford’s goal earlier in the match in the 50th minute and then in the 80th minute after a great move between him and Julian Álvarez, Foden scored again to take the lead. After that goal, United faced another attack. Led by Rodri, he gave striker Erling Haaland the easiest chance of the game and he put it in the back of the net to finish United off.
Watching the game, you could tell that City was always in control. Whether United fans like to admit it or not, they are just not on the same level as the Blues in any area on the pitch. This was a must-win for City to keep them in the title race against Liverpool. United are still outside, looking in on European competition.
“Phil Foden ⚽ #Stockport lad by #Manchester murals” by dullhunk is licensed under CC BY 2.0.