Just 115 Seconds: Manchester City vs. Manchester United 1-2

A derby under extremely unfavorable conditions, yet Manchester City against Manchester United (1:2) on December 15, 2024, in the English Premier League was our "Match of the Week". Not only because of the still impressive star lineup. This rivalry and the fact that anything can happen in the Manchester derby make a football trip to Manchester something special. Also for us.

"There is no criticism of Pep Guardiola," said England expert Raphael Honigstein before the game on Sky Deutschland about the situation at Etihad Stadium, "the only thing he may have underestimated was the depth of his squad, which needed refreshing in the summer. Especially in central midfield, Manchester City has huge problems."

True. And there were more facts that were uncomfortable. Before the match against the city rival from Old Trafford, Manchester City had lost seven of the last 11 competitive games, and in the Premier League, they had their last win on December 4, 2024, with a 3:0 home victory against the high-flying Nottingham Forest.

Manchester City vs. Manchester United as a Crisis Duel

The Viennese Kronen-Zeitung saw in its December 15, 2024 edition "a crisis duel": "Football-Manchester at its lowest point since 2002."

True. Because the two Premier League giants from Manchester had never accumulated so few points together before.

The reigning English champion, Manchester City, had 27 points before the match, the worst value in 14 years.

United was even at just 19 points, a historic negative record since the introduction of the Premier League in the 1992/93 season.

Together, they had 46 points, and it was clear: Only with a win would one of the two Manchester rivals at least temporarily get a breather from the barrage of criticism.

"Glasner delivered the recipe against City," the Krone also recognized, as the former Bundesliga coach of Eintracht Frankfurt and VfL Wolfsburg, who forced a 2:2 draw with City on December 7 with Crystal Palace, seemed to have tactically decoded the "Sky Blues." "When you play like Manchester City with a holding midfielder," said Austrian Oliver Glasner, "there is a lot of space on both sides of that player."

Whether Ruben Amorim, the new manager of Manchester United, took this advice to heart, we don't know.

The Portuguese, seventh head coach since 2013 at Old Trafford (event-breaks.com reported), had not yet won an away game in the Premier League with the "Red Devils" and had left out two prominent forwards, Alejandro Garnacho and Marcus Rashford, from the squad. Amorim said on Sky Sports UK: "We discussed the training performances and then selected the players, and that was simply my choice."

In the words of Jürgen Klopp: "My Decision."

Into the game! It wasn't until the 36th minute that real derby excitement began at Etihad Stadium. Despite the still impressive star lineup on both sides, Erling Braut Haaland had some tussles with United's striker Rasmus Höjlund during corner kicks, but the teams struggled to block out the tension and the many negative distractions. They often froze in tactical constraints.

The 1:0 came from a defender: The former Leipzig player Josko Gvardiol headed in for Manchester City (36'). After that, there was a skirmish near the City penalty area, triggered by Höjlund and City's defense chief Kyle Walker.

Incredible: Manchester United Turns It Around

Oasis frontman and City fan Noel Gallagher was back early for the second half, but he and the other spectators at Etihad Stadium continued to see stiff Manchester fronts.

That changed only in the 87th minute, when Amad Diallo won a penalty for United, and Bruno Fernandes, the captain of the Old Trafford team, made no mistake, converting it to make it 1:1 (88').

But that wasn't enough: Amad (90') turned the match completely on its head, as City goalkeeper Ederson rushed out too quickly – 1:2. The red side of Manchester was dancing in the stands, and Pep Guardiola sank in his manager's chair.

Between the two goals was just 1:55 minutes.

It was United's first away win at Manchester City since March 7, 2021 (2:0).

"That doesn't happen to Pep Guardiola, that happens to Manchester City," said United idol Gary Neville on Sky Sports UK, "these fans haven't seen something like this in many years."

Manchester City's star ensemble now trails league leader FC Liverpool by nine points (who drew 2:2 against Fulham), and with an outstanding match for LFC in the Merseyside Derby at Everton, one would almost assume that defending the title is no longer possible...

But as always, that doesn't mean anything. "I think Liverpool will win the Premier League," said Liverpool idol Ian Rush in an interview with Kicker, "but Manchester City traditionally comes back stronger in January."

That's still possible, just like in the Manchester derby, where anything can still happen.