What a shocker. What an absolute shocker. By no means am I suggesting that City didn't have it in them to beat United, but scoring six goals at Old Trafford? - Phenomenal. It's a grey day for all who are involved with the Red Devils, who are probably looking a little more blue now then ever before, and Sir Alex Ferguson has to use the next week to rally his squad together for a tough trip to Goodison Park.
Manchester City look the real deal for title contenders after their exhilarating performance, and they now aim to build on their hard earned three points. But where did United lose the game? Or rather, where did City outsmart United to claim such a historical win?
Three factors largely influenced the clash between the reds and the blues:
The sizzling Balotelli
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| Balotelli showing his humor |
Building on his fine individual performance against Villa in City's last Premier League outing, Balotelli played a pivotal role in his team's victory against their rivals. Balotelli's movement was a bit much for the United defence to subdue and keep under control.
His first goal was a sublime finish, elegantly placed in the bottom right corner, but it was his positional awareness that allowed him to check his run and place himself at the top of the box, as opposed to scrambling into the clustered penalty area - both Ferdinand and Evans lost their bearings, caught ball watching and not communicating with each other, as he stood in acres of space to calmly punish the absentminded United defence.
This is where we see Balotelli's limitless potential and football wisdom, when he is able to get himself into these dangerous positions and use his undoubted physical talent to score goals of that pedigree. At the inception of the second half, 63 seconds to be precise, City was able to work the ball with quick passing and fluent movement to rattle the lacklustre United defence for a second time.
Again, Balotelli's movement allowed him to latch onto a perfectly weighted through ball, only to be wrestled to the ground by Johnny "Stone Cold" Evans. It was a horrible challenge that indicated his lack of concentration and ability to read the game, it was also a challenge that highlighted Evan's lack of pace and strength as Balotelli was able to use his knowledge to run across the bumbling defender, to then be brought down. Smart playing by Mario, as it was nearly a penalty and obviously a red card offence.
After City were soaring with their two goals, they were still relentless. The Spanish international, David Silva, who has been on top form for the sky blues so far this season, twisted and turned, waited and distributed the perfect pass to slice the home defence wide agape, as Milner latched onto the end of it, only to find who else but the sizzling Balotelli. He has now scored 6 in his last 5 games.
The Red Card
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| United are reduced to ten men as Evans is shown red |
As it would in any game of such magnitude, being detracted to ten men is a hard blow. Johnny Evans was the culprit, but perhaps his selection in the United defence was a variable that brought an inevitability of apprehension with it. I remember reading the starting XI for the home team and thinking that perhaps Jones would have suited better in such a game, after all, he has the physicality to match City's tough players, but also brings a sense of surety to his team mates.
Subsequent to the sending off, City took advantage of the ball possession and at one point nearly had 70% of it in the first twenty minutes of the second half. This is where Mancini's tactical prowess shows in his team. They decided to control the game and be cautious, ultimately shutting out the lingering hopes of the United team and supporters.
With an extra man on the pitch, City then invited the waves of attack from United, with the intention of hitting them on the break - and my God did it worked. They doubled up on the right flank to give Evra a torrid time and used the same tactics to score the goals of Balotelli (his second) and the flying Argentine, Kun Aguerro. We are well aware of the detrimental effects a red card can bear on a team, but credit to City, as they took full advantage of the deficit.
Ferguson's Poor Choices
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| Fergie rues his team's poor display |
Who am I to question the great Sir Alex Ferguson in all of his years at the summit of English football? Yes, I'm not aware of who is doing well in training from who isn't, or who was more up for the game in the changing room, but what I am fully aware of is that you cannot play a City team of this calibre, and not list a central midfielder in the substitutes.
The failure to sign the World Cup finalist Wesley Sneijder from Inter Milan and allowing City to lure Samir Nasri to the Etihad Stadium may be a move Ferguson regrets, as the lack of quality in midfield may only now begin to show it's frailties.
The world is growing to learn more about Manchester City's incredible team; the physical, technical attacking team that Mancini has at his disposal. Therefore it was quite a surprise when I learned that there would be no Michael Carrick on the bench, especially when Cleverley was still not near full recovery. This instantly limited United's options in the centre of the park.
Perhaps the starting line-up was a decent choice, but why not play Phil Jones as opposed to Johnny Evans? We know what Jones is capable of and we are well aware of what Evans is not, that is, consistency. After the team dropped to ten men, Ferguson's delayed reactions could have caused a third goal, as Rooney then dropped into defence to fill the void of his Irish team mate, leaving Welbeck to drown in depths of City's robust defence. They were numerous instances where I thought Carrick would have suited the game.
Fergie decided to go with the energetic duo of Fletcher and Anderson, who are both good midfielder's in their own respects, however Carrick may have been a better choice to compliment either one of these midfielders, as he does have a good reading of the game, and provides cover at the back. His ability to break up play in the midfield would have suited this fragile United squad, as a lot of the play would be broken down or at least slowed the blistering pace of City's attacks.
With five men in Manchester City's engine room, they provided a solid shield for their defence, making it all the more difficult for United to create any chances. United tried to get down to business as they attempted to use width and their usual wing play, but this just did not work against City. City always had all four defenders perfectly organised in the box, with Barry and Yaya Touré providing zonal marking in front of them to sweep up any loose or misplaced clearances. The crosses were never going to work. Never. With Rooney and Welbeck leading United's attack, both of the players were rather undynamic and insatiable in their roles. United needed the penetrating and energetic, zipping runs of Chicharito, without him, the Red Devils were always going to need an incredible goal in order to score.
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| Richards was on top form against the Red Devils |
All in all, it was a horrible, dark day for United players and fans alike, on the contrasting spectrum; a fantastic one for City, who are now bedazzled and inviting the hurdles of the future. The key ingredient for their success today was the raw urge to win. They wanted the win; they played like they wanted to win - and so they got their wish. Each player was on top form in the City ranks, notably Vincent Kompany, who organised his team like a real veteran and lead by example, as well as Micah Richards, who was solid at the back and produced some fine attacking play. The rest of the team were red hot and cooled the angst of the sputtering United side.
City grabbed this opportunity to full capacity and mauled the reigning champions. However, there shouldn't be much panic for the United fans nor any over excitement for the City faithful, as there is a long gruelling season ahead. Couple this with the fact that when Fergie's team were previously whipped in such an embarrassing manner in the past, the majority of the time his boys managed to bounce back to win the league.
But with City's depth and overall quality, it may just be the beginning of a major power shift in Greater Manchester.
Fergie's worst outings:
- Newcastle United 5 - 0 Manchester United (October 20, 1996)
title winners: Man Utd
- Southampton 6 - 3 Manchester United (October 26, 1996)
title winners: Man Utd
- Chelsea 5 - 0 Manchester United (October 3, 1999)
title winners: Man Utd
- Manchester United 1 - 4 Liverpool (March 14, 2009)
title winners: Man Utd
- Manchester United 1 - 4 QPR (January 1, 1992)
title winners: Leeds Utd
- Manchester City 5 - 1 Manchester United (September 23, 1989)
title winners: Liverpool
