Tripped all the way, I am drunk with WORDS!!: Snapped them, the DEVILS WAY!

17th April,2010.

The day all Manchester fans had been awaiting. a day Manchester was divided in two - City and United!! The boys in blue up against the MEN in Red. The MANCHESTER DERBY was here. This encounter was a crucial fixture for both teams, as they looked to write their dominance.

With United looking to inch closer to Chelsea and City trying to stay in the fight for fourth, possibly qualify for the Champions League play-off, this match was staged perfectly. BELIEVE was the feeling in every Red Devil as the kick-off approached. After a disappointing goalless draw handed by Blackburn Rovers,United needed to win this to stay in the title hunt.

Another news that did the rounds - Wayne Rooney makes a start. A major question -Why does Sir Alex Ferguson wants to take the risk when his main man isn't a total 100%??? But as typical Fergie, playing mind games with his opposition is what he does best. He took a gamble on the talisman again. Hopes of a United revival, a quest to win back pride and to do it for the fans, yes United were under pressure going in.

The first kick-off the weekend, a huge derby, a delight for both set of fans, goals galore - lets put it, "EXPECTATIONS WERE TO BE MET!!"

The match saw both teams fight for the ball. It was a WHO HAS THE MORE POSSESSION competition. To everybody's surprise, United old foes Neville, Giggs and Scholes were handed a start and it was a decision I thought was calculated atrocious. Last 3 City games, saw them score 14 goals with their top strikers, Tevez and Adebayor striking a good partnership. The pace of Johnson, Wright-Phillips and Bellamy was supposedly a major problem, and as Paul Masefield said,'UNITED SHOULD HAVE BROUGHT IN PACE!!" - kept tingling in my head too.

City were dominating, while United were gifting possession - frustration for United fans. It made me feel restless and I was filled with spate. City created a few chances but nothing they could boast off. The Argentine Hot-Bomb looked at his best and almost made United wonder why they let him go. An acute free-kick towards the far-left, but our God In Disguise, Edwin Van Der Saar made it look simple as he flung to cut it off.

United on the other hand had several opportunities. Fletcher shot a volley that flew past the keeper. But the best chances fell to "Ryan-The Legend-Giggs" and "Wayne-The White Pele-Rooney". Antonio Valencia, who has been superb for United in his debut season, fed a low-cross to Giggs, who tried to sneak it past Given, only to complete an easy save. Rooney turned Kompany with a brilliant move, and snatched a left only to see it go wide. My heart drooped - Rooney had missed a terrific chance to nail City. The match that looked a meaty avocation was far away from being called a DERBY!!

Second half, United put the meddle on the peddle and started looking a more superior side to score. But with City's defense in total strength, United were left sulking. The moment I waited for came in the 75th minute when Fergie heard my plea. He took off Rooney and in came Berbatov. Also, Gibson who had a terrific outing agaisnt the German Champions was substituted by Nani, and United now looked balanced. In the dieing moments of the match, Nani crossed a superb ball in to the box, Giggs a whisker away from getting his head on it.

Gabriel Obertan - a late entrant switched flanks with Nani and United looked to make up for their draw last weekend. 90 minutes up and the shouts of another INFAMOUS DRAW started to quiver. But not to be. If anybody, but the United and City fans remember, the last encounter of both these clubs, they would surely say,"The game isn't done until INJURY TIME is over!!' Last time, United crashed City's hopes of ending a draw when Michael Owen scored an unlikely winner for the Devils in the 96th minute through a Giggs cross (A day I almost ran my parents and neighbors deaf when I screamed in victory!!) It was DEJAVU time for City who were on the verge of accepting their fate. 3 minutes into added time, Patrice Evra, whose been a terrific Devil for us, crossed the ball. Of all men, the tiny old legged horse, Paul Scholes met the ball with his GINGER-HEAD, and what happened after that was sheer unexplainable scene. The City of Manchester was officially conquered by the MEN IN RED, a league double over their bitter rivals, sending me and fellow United fans into total jubilation. This win moved United within a point of table-toppers Chelsea, who have a tough game against Tottenham Hotspurs. (Pray the Blues lose!!)