Manchester United 1-6 Manchester City....That fateful day in October 2011 goes down in history as one of the most astonishing ever. The football world came to a standstill as Mario Balotelli and his friends unleashed immeasurable pain on neighbours, Manchester United right in front of despairing supporters at the Theatre of Dreams. The season ended with Manchester United pipped to the EPL title in the final seconds of the last match day. The stressed exclamation of 'AGUEROOOOOOOOOOO' cannot be forgotten in a hurry. The nimble Argentine scored the winner v Queens Park Rangers to secure his team's 1st title in 44 long years.
Sir Alex Ferguson is still anguished. The Old Dinosaur as Martin O'Neill calls him, was greatly angered when his side were denied of their 20th Domestic trophy and 13th under his reign. Like a boss, he took it in his stride and used it as a motivational tool coming into this season. The red devils have set the pace this season and currently sit 15 points clear of defending champions and City rivals, Manchester City. Robin Van Persie's 19 goals have come in handy for Fergie's men. Today represents a chance to put one over their so-called noisy neighbours and stretch the wide margin to 18 points.
Roberto Mancini hasn't hidden his anger and derision towards Manchester United. The Italian has consistently made it clear that the red army don't deserve to be ahead of his team. Utter balderdash! Manchester City lie a distant second behind United and fittingly so. On the basis of this season's performances, they don't deserve anything better to be fair. The Champions-elect accepted the challenge and thus raised the bar higher than any other team could reach. Their exploits so far have been exceptional to say the least. Records have been made and others torn to shreds. Twenty-five (25) of Thirty (30) games have been won and only 3 lost. Champions-elect indeed.
Tonight's match pitches current champions against Champions-elect. If Manchester City ever have the slightest hope that a repeat of last season's slump will resurface, they have another thing coming. Mancini has all but conceded the title to the red part of Manchester. He expects a win tonight to at least cut the lead to 12 points.According to the City players, they expect to beat Manchester United on their own turf to retain some pride. The task will be herculean. Sir Alex's men will be all guns blazing tonight as they attempt to exorcise the demons of the crushing defeat inflicted 18 months ago. That 6-1 demolition has to be avenged. What better time than tonight? It remains to be seen.
Sir Alex Ferguson himself expressed his surprise concerning the weaknesses and frailties of the Manchester City title challenge. In his words, he expected much more. He will be glad at the turn of events. The aim this season was to better the goal difference that determined where the trophy went last time. United have achieved that and even much more. FIFTEEN points and a goal difference of +10 over City is a massive improvement on last season's stats. The red devils have done extremely well and everyone agrees. Tonight, a lot of things are at stake and only a WIN will be seen as enough to soothe the nerves of both supporters. Manchester United for obvious reasons.
Probable Lineups-
MANCHESTER UNITED
DDG, Rafa Da Silva, Rio, Vidic, Evra, Carrick, Cleverley, Young, Nani, Rooney, RVP
MANCHESTER CITY
Hart, Zabaleta, Kompany, Nastasic, Clichy, J. Garcia, Barry, Y. Toure, Silva, Aguero, TEVEZ.
Carlos Tevez returns to a place he called home for 2 years and won the Champions League among other elite tournaments. El Apache has been in superb form for the Citizens and will be hoping to play a huge part in his team's quest to claim victory at Old Trafford. Yaya Toure recently signed a new contract and will want to celebrate it in style. Samir Nasri might be left on the subs bench. The Frenchman has been very poor and doesn't deserve to start a match of this magnitude.
Michael Carrick is the main man for United this season. His commanding displays in midfield have helped in no small measure to catapult the 12 time EPL champions to the top of the Premier League. This is best season of his career to date and he is enjoying it like none other. The man has been gigantic and excellent. Testing himself against Yaya Toure and Javi Garcia is a challenge he relishes and thrives on. Robin Van Persie hasn't scored in NINE (9) games. Holy Christ! Even though he tried to claim the Bramble own goal at the Stadium of Light. A player of his calibre should never find himself in this situation. Then again, it is only a player of his ability that can buck the trend. Tonight might be his night...Great players come to the fore in the biggest of games. Class is PERMANENT.
Ohireime P Eboreime
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