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It is now a genuine rivalry. United have the experience of challenging at the top for years, City have the money and now, a very good squad of players. Could be a few goals, go for 2-2.

Chelsea will still have too much for both over the course of the season.

Steve, a lifelong City fan: "There is real rivalry there now,"
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That seems to be a strange statement from a 'lifelong City fan' - the rivalry has never been away. Ciy's new found riches have admittedly kicked started a new era, proven last year by the intensity of feeling surrounding the Carling Cup of all competitions, but to the fans who been loyal to both causes over the years, this has always been 'real'.
From the top of my head in my tenure, the 1-5 of '89 cancelled out with no uncertainty by the 5-0 of '94, the McClair 3-3 of '90 to Eric's day in '93.
To true fans, this fixture has never been away, it has simply been Sheiken up on one side of the City by investment and expectancy.

1. At 07:40am on 10 Nov 2010, footballfutbolfitba wrote:
It is now a genuine rivalry

It's always been a genuine rivalry. I'm a United fan and hate how some 'new' fans see Chelsea and Arsenal as our main rivals. It's Citeh and Liverpool. Always has been always will be. I have to say though, I haven't woken up on the morning of a derby with quite this much anticipation. I don't mind a resurgent Citeh......as long as 34 years turns into 35!

A City win by 2 or more goals will see them leapfrog United into second place so is even more significant in the grand scheme of things. As for #3's comment about local rivalry trumping any championship rivalry, it's only true to a certain extent as no-one can question the level of intensity rises significantly in these games when there's actually something at stake other than local bragging rights...after all trophies and history are what supporters use to wind each other up! At the moment city resemble a northern version of Harry Enfield's 'loads of money' character.

4. At 09:35am on 10 Nov 2010, JoC wrote:
A City win by 2 or more goals will see them leapfrog United into second place so is even more significant in the grand scheme of things. As for #3's comment about local rivalry trumping any championship rivalry, it's only true to a certain extent as no-one can question the level of intensity rises significantly in these games when there's actually something at stake other than local bragging rights...after all trophies and history are what supporters use to wind each other up! At the moment city resemble a northern version of Harry Enfield's 'loads of money' character.

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yeah and he had another character who United now remind me of "bugger all money"

"As for #3's comment about local rivalry trumping any championship rivalry, it's only true to a certain extent as no-one can question the level of intensity rises significantly in these games when there's actually something at stake other than local bragging rights..."

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Try telling that to Reds/Blues that live and work in Manchester the day after a derby defeat.

#6..agreed, but it's so much easier to come back at your tormentors when you reel off all the trophies you've got and they haven't...a certain level of smugness creeps in ;)

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Much anticipation tonight - whether we can see off our 'neighbours' from down south is something we'll find out later. But long-term, United have mega problems. Their near-£800m debt is a potentially terminal issue that no amount of 75,000 gates can address. And how long can Fergie go on? CTID.

City fans need to calm down. Even if City win tonight it wouldn't be that much of an achievement with United having pretty much all their best players out injured and fallen ill. No doubt the media would jump at the chance to talk rubbish about how City are now the number 1 team in manchester though.

The fact is it will take City 20 years of winning many trophies for them to be anywhere near the Club United are today, let's not forget that.

Right... a 3-2 United win even with the Kids out, after all...this is United!

#9 in the long term we are all dead.

However, imagine if your sugar daddy pulled out and stopped writing cheques - what would happen then? City is not a big enough club to fund all there overpaid superstars through their limited fan base. Therefore looking into the long term, if the Glazers pull out of united then the only way is up for the Reds, whereas the only way is down for the Blues. I wouldnt be too cocky about it.

However in the present, things are excitingly poised. I can't see united losing, but with the illness going through the team, i am not sure we are strong enough to win it. I hate sitting on the fence and saying draw, but i do actually think this will be the case tonight. Maybe we should bring all our sick players to the game and get them to infect the City players ;)

The whole Tevez situation is interesting to me. Funny how since leaving United he has been very unsettled and homesick.....maybe he is missing OT ;)

I feel sorry for united fans. City is the future. Get used to it. Stop banking with barclays and start using electric cars.

until city win something there is no rivalry which is why liverpool has been the real derby for years, the reason the manc derby is now almost as or even more important than the lpool matches is that a lot of people see city as having a far greater chance of winning the league etc

As a Gooner, i wouldn't have cared a bit about this Derby until City started getting big players and big money.

However until they win something all that money really doesn't compare to United achievements of the past and recent history.

People are talking about united being bankrupt and in a terrible position but until they actually come out and say it's a problenm then it clearly isn't as bad as people are making out.

An 800 million debt that is being serviced is not a problem as long as they can service the debt without it costing them investment.

As a very yoing kid I supported Celtic and ManU were my English team. My dad would never buy us Celtic strips for obvious reasons being in the West of Scotland and so one christmas I ended up with a Man City away strip (presumably because for Santa this was the cheapeat strip in the shop)and so perversely I've always liked both these Manchester clubs and find myself gebnuinely wanting a good game and a draw!

You've got a multitude of issues there Rob04 and I wouldn't know where to start !
So I'll not even try!!

I find all you United fans a bit sad. The balance of power is shifting and you hate it. So you bleat about how much money City are spending - simple jealousy cos the days when Utd were the spending powehouse are over. You talk about history as if you have a devine right to own it. Soon all you will ever do is talk about it, cos you won't be making it on the pitch. Now is the time and things are changing irrevocably for the blue side of Manchester. If history teaches us anything, it's that nothing stays the same. Your club is being pillaged by Americans who have no interest in your history but only in how much money they can get out of your club. You put on a childish, simplistic parade of wearing green and gold scarves to show how upset you are, but you still turn up in your droves, doling out money for your inflated ticket prices to feed your inflated egos. A group organise themselves to save the day, calling themselves the " Red Knights" - ha what a joke. You have to have actually done something to warrant the term "knights". And what have they done - Naff all!!! - More bloated egos strutting their impotent, delusional importance. The match tomorrow won't change history. City will win, I'm convinced of it. All it will show, and all United and City fans know this already, is that City are here to stay and on the march to write their own bit of history. - AND UNITED FANS CAN'T STAND IT!!!

All this nonsense about the rivalry only becoming intense in the last couple of years, its always been intense! its only because of the current position of the two clubs that the game is getting the national interest that it never previously had. I can't comment about fans elsewhere in the country but for reds and blues in and around the Manchester area this has always been the one that mattered most, even when City were in the doldrums and even above the games against Liverpool.
As for predictions for tonight, as a red ive got a feeling City are due a win against us after the games last season, hope im wrong though.

Not sure exactly the year but it must have been the early seventies. My twin brother (Neil) had already discovered his team, he wore the all white of Leeds UTD, he knew every player on that team. It must have been a Sunday afternoon, perhaps Kick Off and my dad had the footy on. You must remember that in those early 1970's the only LIVE game was the FA cup final. I was watching the game on the TV, it was black and white TV and one team had on darker "Grey" shirt and they were playing a team in a lesser "Grey" shirt. The team in the darker grey shirt were winning 3-1.

For some reason, I don't know why I bonded with the lighter grey team. Perhaps its because they were losing but perhaps it was an act of God. In the following weeks I learned the names of that CITY team, Bell, Lee, Sumerbee, Oakes, Doyle, Corrigan and that my friends is how a 40 year love affair began.

I sometimes imagine how my life would have been if I had picked the team in the darker grey color. For one the "roller coaster" I have been riding for the last 40 years would have been less bumpy, less scary and probrably a lot more enjoyable.

But in essence I have loved the ride, football as this unequaled ability to take you from the realms of ecstacy, to the edge of depression but always leaves you with "HOPE".

I now reside in Texas USA, thousands of miles away from Manchester. I will follow the game on the ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ and record the game for later viewing. I will know the score before the end, I'm surrounded by a sea of red and they take a unique pleasure in pushing that roller coaster a little faster down the steep drop, I'm just hoping this time the acendecy from that drop is smooth andrises up to a "Blue Moon Rising"

Enjoy the game.

Dave from Tex

Sirmouseburger got it spot on.
Both clubs have been taken over, however United's take over is a shackle holding us back. One day it will be broken and normal United supremecy will resume. Whereas Citeh's take over is a play-thing for a rich sheik, who one day will also pull the plug presumably when he's won a couple of trophies and got bored with it. Then Normal Citeh service will be resumed, middle to lower premier league table/championship.
United = rich being held back. Citeh = small time club being given a piggy-back ride.
Citeh fans - you are NOT a big club, you do NOT/have not and will not attract the top players on merit, you're living in a cartoon world where everything is happy and rosey, however one day the bubble will burst.
United's American owners may be forced to sell one day in a similar fashion to Liverpool, but just as Liverpool was bought out swiftly so will Manchester United, the brand globally is far, far too big to be ignored by any serious commercial investor.
Time my friends... all it's gonna takes is time.

#17: 'The balance of power is shifting...City are here to stay and on the march to write their own bit of history. - AND UNITED FANS CAN'T STAND IT!!!'

Really? So far a distinctly average United have scored almost twice as many goals, have a better goal difference, have won more points and are two places higher in the table than a City squad full of overpaid mercenaries (£200,000 a week for Yaya Toure, seriously?!). United are unbeaten so far this season. City have lost to, amongst others, Wolverhampton and the mighty Lech Poznan.

City may well win tonight's game, especially if Fergie's comments about most of our starting XI having a virus are true. But in the grand scheme of things it will make no difference whatsoever. In 2006 City beat United 3-1 at Eastlands, having held us to a 1-1 draw at Old Trafford earlier in the season. United finished the season as league winners, and the following season won the League and Champions League double, followed by another League win and a CL final appearance. During the same period City have remained to be a joke, their most significant achievements being breaking the British transfer record (on Robinho, a player who has proved vital to them and has set the league alight with his impressive and match-winning displays) and poaching Tevez from United.

Until City can back up their outlandish statements about being the best team in Manchester / England / the World with significant achievements, they will conitnue to be seen as a joke. Especially if idiots like you continue to spout rubbish on forums.

#21, someone touch a nerve?

The mere fact that CITY are constantly in the media, TV, Papers, Forums indicates how far they have come. The one thing I do not get is that UTD fans are unwilling to recognize change, that a cycle of winning always results in a cycle of losing. The ecconomy, sport. Liverpool dominated football for 20 years, it ended. UTD have dominated football for 20 years, its coming to an end.

All UTD fans can talk about is the fact that CITY have not been successful for 35 year, we dont care. We follow CITY because they are CITY and when they do end their barren spill imagine the emotion and elation?

Cyclic my friend. CITY are at the back end of their losing cycle, UTD will begin theirs, per Elton John "Its the circle, the circle of life".


By the way??? Wolves out-played you guys in 2 games this year and were unfortunate. Did UTD win at Burnley last year???? The CITY team playing tonight will bear no resemblence to the team that lost against Lech Poznan, like the team that played at WBA this weekend.

Bring on the pea, bring on the Nani, even bring back your Oregon Mercenary Rooney, your not scary anymore. (honestly)

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Steve has brought up his four-year-old daughter Keira to believe that anything to do with the colour red is disgusting - even her crayons...

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Not really the sort of comment the ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ should be making look like a good thing now is it?

Dear Whinger
And similarly, we support United because they are United, because our Dad's told us to as we grew up in the shadows of OT.
And we don't have to 'imagine the emotion and elation' as we savoured it in '93 after a 26 year gap (15 years for me on a personal note).
You are correct, things move in cycles - as I travelled the length and breadth of England in the 80's watching drivel whilst Liverpool racked up Championship after Championship, I would never have believed that they could possibly go 3 years without winning the league, let alone 20!
So yes, your untold wealth will eventually bring a trophy to the council stadium, there is no two ways about that, but until that day arrives, the clock will continue to tick.
Fortunately, we are not as pre-occupied with our neighbours as others appear to be.

The Whinger....

you're not scary anymore

Really?

So are City that confident then?

captain_red_devil is not far away from being spot on. United have coughed and spluttered their way through 11 games and managed to remain unbeaten
We were told we were a one man team but we are the second highest scorers in the division with our "one man" contributing a solitary penalty.
We are unbeaten in Europe and havent conceded a goal.

Tonight though will be our first real test although to be fair we've already beaten Liverpool, Valencia (away) and the World Champions/Grand National/ Boat Race and Nobel prize winners Spurs.

Tonight should be a cracker. City will have to go for it as its at home and there is still no finer team on the counter than United.

Finally, if SAF is to be believed, the majority of Uniteds senior men are on their sick beds. Will City fans take any satisfaction from beating an under strength / under fit United side? Or are they more nervous about being shown up in their own back yard?

I cant call it tonight, all the old cliches apply but its nice to have a derby that REALLY matters again

34 barren years and counting is nice big number for a massive club, especially when stacked against what United has won in that period.
Only upside is that Newcastle United has an even longer spell.
But they don’t have a neighbour like Manchester United, do they?

No #17;
You really do make me laugh!
Wayne Rooney prodigal son or mercenary? Held United to ransom, was villified by the fans, moaned that United lacked ambition and now is welcomed back with open arms on anything from £60-100k a week more - enough said.
Robinho was a statement of intent for the City owners. I didn't work out and we lost some money, no big deal. United got £80m for Ronaldo and use it to service their debt. Some bankers are lying on the beach now lapping up the simplicity of it all. Crazy or funny? Gotta stop for a minute as its beginning to hurt.
Also look up - Juan Sebastian Veron for money well spent - enough said
No#17 you should go and do a simple and I mean simple course in basic economics - £800m in debt and counting. "Hmm so all that money we're generating we're not actually making a profit. Quick boys hand out the green and gold scarves we'll head em off at the pass!!!"
United are unbeaten - fact. United will be beaten come 10pm this evening - fact.
The landscape is changing, get used to it or I suggest you emmigrate. Apparently there are a lot of opportunities to buy shopping malls in the States going really cheap and the owners are just on your doorstep. It looks too good to miss:)))

#25 Fair Comment:

But I disagree, the pre-occupation starts with your boss who cannot stop talking about CITY. Apparently Fergie is still upset about selling Tevez??

Why are you so pre-occupied about our wealth? Our owners are putting money back into the community, back into Manchester, that most be agood thing??

Like have stated numerous times UTD fans are not unlike the women out of the "Stepford Wives" robots who spout the same rhetoric over and over again. You lambast our spending yet this is the model UTD have used for 25 years, buy the best players available. (Rooney, Evra, Vidic, Caddick, Nani, Valencia, The Pea)

Now UTD have no money you harp on about CITY's spending spree?

By the way, just an observation in the form of an analogy:

You want a new car. You walk into the showroom, you see the car you like, perhaps a BMW, asking price is 25K. You have the choice of buying, negotiating. You want the car, do you pay the price if you have the 25K?

In essence Manchester City do not dictate the price of a player, the club they are purchasing from does. You either pay the price or you don't.

For Example: UTD offer Rooney 100K a week, he says "ERHHHHHHHH I could go to CITY and make 250K a week and we have a weak squad". Sir Alex all teary eyed lambasts the player, sends him to the USA, breaks the pay structure at your debt ridden club because???? He thinks Rooney is worth it!!!!

So we can spend hour on hour talking about spending but in essence did UTD not buy Kleberson, Veron, Ferlon and Hargreaves who all failed at OT because Fergie believed they were players who could improve them.

Enjoy the last days of Rome, a new Rome is rising

#26-Nick.

Yes confident.

Lets see at kick-off who is wearing the red shirt. It does not matter really.

Ferguson will play his strongest team available, CITY do not have Balotelli (I know he only played one meaningful game but his movement, strength and pace on Sunday looked very promosing).

Player for player I beleive CITY are stronger: In De Jong we have the best holding midfield player in the division and in Silva a creator.

Yes, I will take great pleasure in beating any UTD team.

#22, Katie Price is in the media a lot, as was Jade Goody. What's your point?

I'm very aware that a lot of teams have outplayed us and we haven't been playing particularly well for the last couple of seasons (compared to the few seasons prior to that). The fact of the matter is that that's what makes a good team. By the way, I never said that United have never lost a game they should have easily won. I was merely pointing out that City are not (at least not yet) the all-conquering footballing giants that some City fans believe they are. And before you come back with 'All big teams can have off days and lose to small teams' let me remind you that City haven't actually done anything yet that qualifies them as a 'big' team. They have won nothing in recent history and aren't exciting to watch.

Anyway, here's to a cracking match tonight.

You had to mention Rome !

#31- Once again fair point.

But can I just put one thing straight.

CITY are not exciting to watch??

I have seen most of their games this year and I have been a CITY fan for over 40 years and currently we are playing some of the best footbal I have ever seen us play. Against WBA this weekend our speed of passing and movement was superb. Against Arsenal with 10 men we still tried to play football.

I believe you have been following the media. In Ya YA Toure, Johnson, Tevez and Silva we have match winners and Mancini plays a disciplined approach.

I do not want to lose to you guys 4-3 and everybody tell me it was a great game. I would rather we won 1-0 in the 96 minute via a Gary Neville own goal.

nani back to the team.... he ll make the difference
3-1 to man u

city supporters, think from the innermost part of your brain and try feeling from the innermost part of your heart..... man u will be on the top all the way.................

#35- Now thats bloody funny.

When you support a team like CITY its not about winning, its all about romance, a love affair, in good times and in bad times.

Lets see were bipin_Chicharito will be when "Rome Falls", its coming my friend, Nero is playing the fiddle.

Correct me if I'm wrong but wasn't Nero's fiddling whilst Rome burned the same year City last won a trophy?
Sorry - couldn't resist !
Someone's got to lighten things up ;-) (and I don't mean Rome).

#37- yes, spot on. So my cyclic philosphy detailed earlier will prevail again, because Nero is fiddling.

I think the Inter Toto Cup is the last thing we won?? No, 1976, Denis Tueart over-head kick against Newcastle, I was there.

"To be honest its only the last 2-3 years CITY fans have been talking about trophies, before that it was about another relegation dog-fight so the change of landscape is forthcoming"

My word you City lot are arrogant, and where do you even get this "the power is shifting" twoddle? United are currently 2nd and to be honest haven't even started yet, City are 4th and even if they do win tonight against a below par united side, they will not be ahead. Money does not automatically equal silverware.

Your bunch of money grabbing over paid so called 'players' are under achieving and do not look threatening apart from Tevez. United have never spent loads of money on players, we bring the young players through the ranks, with maybe one or two big (but not too big) spends, that is the united way.

Whatever the score tonight United are the dominant force, City will battle for 4th (and thats if they keep Tevez fit), United will challenge for 1st.

To sum up, tonight means nothing apart from 3 points.

Bring it on.

#39-Thats absolutely brilliant analysis.

Its not arogance by the way, its confidence.

UTD Never buy anyone??

Van De Sar, Evra, Ferdy, Vidic, Rafael, Carrick, Nanni, Valencia, Berbatov, Roney, Anderson, all home-grown???

UTD will battle for 4th and not make the Champions League, this will become the begining of the end.

Mark my words son, mark my words.

#40 - Rafael, Fabio, Nani, Fletcher, Scholes, Giggs, Rooney - these are all players that we have bought from a young age and nurtured them to turn into class players, Nani was very immature and had a lot to learn when he first came to United. I didn't mean to say that all of them come from the academy, but out of all the players you've mentioned only Berba cost a decent amount of money.

"Utd will battle for 4th and not make the champions league" - sorry mate but this is a silly thing to say.

If United win tonight it will be unbelievable considering what we have to work with tonight, but never write fergie off, he may spring a surprise or 2.

#41. Also it is worth noting that Ronaldo was by no means the finished article when he joined United.

I always love reading these blogs after the match has been played. Especially all the silly City predictions of how they were going to win and this will spell the end of United. How long have City fans been desperately going on about it being the beginning of the end for United....your predictions are about as reliable as Nostradamus's.

However, I would be interested to know their opinions on the game are, as most neutral pundits would say that United shaded the match. City were at home, with c. £300m worth of talent on the pitch and yet they could not even muster a serious shot at VDS. Money well spent?

If i was Sheikh Mansour, i would bring my wheelbarrow of cash across Manchester and invest in a decent team! ;)

I can't see while united losing. But most of the players are ill and I am not sure that they are strong enough to fight. But I never say that United have never lost but I just want to say that here the things are different.

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