Monotony Dominated a Highly Anticipated Manchester Derby

Published on November 11, 2010 by usman wardag · No Comments Advertisement

It was all boredom and monotony at Eastlands as the two giants from Manchester played out a goalless draw in a much anticipated derby.

Labeled as the “derby of the decade” between the two Rivals, certainly it could have provided better viewing given the quality of players on the pitch. But it was cagy from the start and in the first half only a Carlos Tevez free kick was the most notable chance, which Van Der Sar saved rather comfortably.

The onus was on City, being the home side to set out an attacking formation and go for the win, but surprisingly that was not the case. Roberto Manchini, the City manager, played a defensive minded formation that included three defense minded midfielders. With City’s one of the best player of the season Adam Johnson on the bench, intentions were all but clear that City would rather be happy to take a point from this one.

United on the other hand were quite happy to play a safe game and created occasional chances themselves. Nani forced a comfortable save from Joe Hart in the first half. The Red devils were steady in the second half without being over ambitious and exerted some late pressure of City which made the fans nervous bearing in mind that United had snatched late victories against them in the previous three encounters.

The whole match saw only four shots on goal, which tells you everything you need to know about the game.