The Manchester Derby in round 31 is considered one of the most boring matches between the two teams in the Premier League era. It came at a time when Man United had reached the bottom of their 30th year of achievements while Man City could no longer maintain the image of the defending champions.
Before 2009, Manchester derbies often had a winning end for Sir Alex Ferguson's team. From 2013 onwards, Man City have won more. The period from 2009 to 2013 was the time when the competition between the two teams was most balanced.
Returning to the Old Trafford match last week, Man United still played with a familiar formation, with good coordination between the players on both wings. The biggest bright spot in the squad is still conductor Bruno Fernandes when the Portuguese midfielder attacked, defending very smoothly and was still a constant threat.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the front line, Pep Guardiola's team no longer shows weakness in midfield, but the connection between the midfield and the strikers is almost gone. Without Erling Haaland, the balls sent to the top line did not know where to choose.
90 minutes at Old Trafford sketched out the entire image of Man United and Man City this season. Worse, this performance may follow them until the end of the season when the two teams still have very important goals to chase. With Man United, it is the Europa League championship to rescue everything. Meanwhile, if it is not possible to lower the top 4 Premier League, it is a disaster for Man City.
This was a very good season for Liverpool, but the gap between them and the other teams in the Big Six is so large that it is partly because these 5 clubs are gradually decreasing.
Arsenal lost steam again in the championship race, Chelsea was uncertain, Man United and Tottenham are now weaker than mid-level teams while Man City fell into an unprecedented crisis in the Pep Guardiola era.
Perhaps from now until the end of the season, fans should focus more on names like Nottingham Forest. They are the team worth watching more than Man United and Man City as they are very close to a ticket to the Champions League next season.
Not only that, Newcastle is currently tied with Chelsea and only wants to be ranked 5th due to a lack of goal difference. As for Aston Villa, they are only 2 points behind the Top 4.
In a season when the big clubs of English football "shoot themselves in the foot" one by one, perhaps it is time for the media to show fairness to cheer on the remaining names such as Nottingham, Newcastle or Aston Villa.
They are traditional teams in this playground, have contributed a lot in recent years and need to be treated fairly to encourage their spirit.
