In England, they don't have "rivalries," they have "derbies." One of the most interesting of all soccer derbies is the one between Manchester United and Manchester City. United are, of course, the dominant club of English football, having won the league title 18 times, including in 1993, 1994, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2007, 2008, and 2009. City, on the other hand, have exactly two league titles: 1937 and 1968. As you might expect under these circumstances, City fans hate United with the intensity of a thousand suns, while United fans tend to ignore City. It reminds me quite a lot of the relationship between N.C. State and UNC in basketball.
Anyway, City has come into a big sum of money recently, as they have no ownership with deep pockets. Last year, they jumped all the way up to fifth in the League -- just barely missing a chance to play in the European Champions' League. United came in second -- which counts as a disappointing season for them. This week, the two teams are both near the top of the table:
1. Chelsea 8-2-1 (25 points)
2. Man Utd 6-0-5 (23 points)
3. Arsenal 6-3-2 (20 points) (goal differential of 11)
4. Man City 6-3-2 (20 points) (goal differential of 5)
5. Newcastle 5-4-2 (17 points)
Today, United travels to City for the first of two annual meetings between the clubs. The last time United came to City (in April), they pulled out a thrilling 1-0 victory with a very late goal. United also leads the all-time series 64-42-49. But City fans will be desperate for a victory over their hated rivals. The game will be on ESPN 2 at 3 PM eastern, and it should be quite a show.
The dude from Mayfield I recently met was really nice about it, but it was obvious that he thought it was cute that we at Heath considered Mayfield such a big rival.
ReplyDeleteYour anecdote just makes it that much harder to root for Mayfield in the playoffs.
ReplyDeleteWhy would you entertain the idea of rooting for Mayfield in the playoffs?
ReplyDelete