TexasBlueMoon said:
An interesting take...
<a class="postlink" href="http://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/entertainment/articles/2012-01/09/man-united-city-fa-cup-what-we-learned" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/entertainm ... we-learned</a>
History and a mouth-watering fourth round meeting with Liverpool at the end of January will record that in 2012 Manchester United knocked their noisy neighbours out of the FA Cup. According to ITV pundit Roy Keane, that is all that matters. However - and we wouldn't say this to his face - Keano is dead wrong-o. United's 3-2 victory at the Etihad stadium will go down as the game which cost them the Premier League and gave Manchester City the impetus to win the title for the first time since 1968. Here are the five reasons why United's victory in this battle will lose them the war... [Declaration: despite what you might think, the author is a United fan.]
1. They let City off the hook
At half-time, leading 3-0 and with their opponents down to ten men and in disarray, the game was all but over as far as United's players were concerned. It wasn't. What United needed to do was put City to the sword. If United had got a fourth goal early, the blues would have collapsed and, as well as writing a painful wrong (United's harrowing 1-6 home defeat by City in October), City's self-belief would have taken a huge body blow from which they would not have recovered.
2. United showed they were afraid
After losing two league games in succession again Blackburn and Newcastle, the word was out that Manchester United could be bullied. Had they gone to City, silenced the fans and handed out a beating, that rumour would have been put to bed. Instead, in the second half, United played as if they were the team with ten men and by the end were clinging on to their victory for dear life. City harried them, forced players into mistakes, and believed in their hearts they could at the least get a draw. United by comparison, simply bottled it. The message was clear: even with a 3-0 lead and playing against ten men, United didn't believe in themselves.
3. Mancini showed he was a real world-class manager
Whatever was said by the Manchester City manager at half-time worked. The players came out for the second half with real belief that they could get something from the game. Mancini could have been forgiven for doing things the Italian way: damage limitation, keep United to 3-0, maintain some pride. He didn't. He devised a brilliant tactical formation that shored up City's defence, but offered them outlets on the break when the opportunities came. It was a master stroke that very nearly salvaged the game for City.
4. United's squad is not as strong as City's
Yes, United have had injuries. The loss of captain Nemanja Vidic, Jonny Evans, Ashley Young and Darren Fletcher would hurt any team, but that is part and parcel of the game. As it stands, even with a full contingent of players, United still need a keeper they can trust, a defensive rock to replace Rio Ferdinand, a creative central midfield player, and a new Paul Scholes. Simply recalling the old Paul Scholes demonstrates that Sir Alex Ferguson knows what is missing from his team. City, on the other hand, were missing Yaya and Kolo Toure (to the Africa Cup of Nations), and injured strikers Mario Balotelli and Edin Dzeko… and that was before they lost Vincent Kompany inside the first 15 minutes. In the second half they didn't play like they were missing anyone - even when they brought on the injury-plagued ex-United and England midfielder Owen Hargreaves. It was an attitude exemplified by Sergio Aguero, who showed more courage, determination and guts than all of United's defence and midfield put together.
5. City will feel it is "us against the world"
It was always the mentality that Ferguson cultivated at United. The FA are against us. The ref is against us. Luck is against us... but we don't care. City will feel that this morning. United beat them, but they didn't break them, and Mancini will be telling his players exactly that. He will tell them they should not have had a man sent off, that they should have had a penalty in the second half, that they deserved a draw. And his players will carry that injustice with them, steeling them in their quest for the title. A quest that they will now surely fulfil.
