Manchester City

[nev]

well done city great win for you lads and respect for the minutes silence.

we where out played by the better team and without rooney we loose the heart of our team, that is 5 loses without rooney in the team.

i did not get to see the game as it was on early hour;s over here in australia i got up and turned the internet on but from what i can follow you well and trully deserved you win.

dont know what it is with the derby we have not really performed well against you lot for quiet a few years.

[mrbojangles]

Thankyou City....

I care very much about the result but and, am <deleted> off big time that we didn't turn up.

I'm overwhelmed by the respect and silence from the City fans.

FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY HEART, THANK YOU. THE MINUTES SILENCE WAS BEAUTIFULLY OBSERVED.

THANKYOU

redrus

A post from a real sporting gentleman

Well done City, a great performance by your players AND supporters

I'm so glad that no one spoilt it. You're a gent Red

[mrbojangles]

well done city great win for you lads and respect for the minutes silence.

we where out played by the better team and without rooney we loose the heart of our team, that is 5 loses without rooney in the team.

i did not get to see the game as it was on early hour;s over here in australia i got up and turned the internet on but from what i can follow you well and trully deserved you win.

dont know what it is with the derby we have not really performed well against you lot for quiet a few years.

Cheers nev

I must admit, Ronaldo looked lost without having Rooney around. Although Rooney hasn't been scoring that many, it would be interesting to know how many assists he has.

[chavy]

The footy forum is a bit quiet at the moment, Bigtoe, MrToad Macenello are keeping a low profile

Lastnight we watched the game & decided to have a "teb". Well. There was a couple of 6-0 4-0 being tossed about but, guess who cleaned up the dosh with a Man City win?

Yep, there's a drink waiting for you MrBJ when your in town next.........After they'd all stopped laughing at my prediction it was "he who laughs last laughs longest"

[mrbojangles]

Yep, there's a drink waiting for you MrBJ when your in town next.........After they'd all stopped laughing at my prediction it was "he who laughs last laughs longest"

And we laugh together matey

[mrbojangles]

From the BBC:-

Man Utd 1-2 Man City

Manchester United suffered a setback to their title hopes as they were beaten by derby rivals Manchester City.

A poignant minute's silence and tribute to the Munich air disaster victims took place before a game which saw Darius Vassell's strike put City ahead.

United became stifled by a staunch City side who extended their lead with a glanced Benjani Mwaruwari header.

United struggled overall but got a consolation goal when Michael Carrick shot into the corner in injury time.

The hugely emotive occasion had begun in moving scenes at Old Trafford in respect to the 23 - of which eight were players from the Old Trafford club - who died in the Munich air disaster on 6 February 1958.

United's players wore 1958-style sponsorless red shirts numbered one to 11, while City also wore special shirts.

United manager Sir Alex Ferguson and counterpart Sven-Goran Eriksson each laid a wreath either side of the centre circle before an impeccably observed minute's silence.

The disruption to the silence feared beforehand did not materialise and, instead, the clubs paid their respects as the city came together to produce a touching tribute before the game got under way.

United appeared in determined mood and quickly set about City and put the visitors on the backfoot.

A piercing Nani ball found Carlos Tevez and he crossed to the far post for the unmarked Ryan Giggs, whose acute-angled strike was tipped over by keeper Joe Hart.

City slowly began to gather themselves but were given another scare when Micah Richards was outpaced by Tevez only for fellow centre-back Richard Dunne to retrieve the situation by blocking the United striker's shot.

Richards survived a handball shout just outside the City area before the visitors broke United's brief early grip.

Martin Petrov slid a defence-splitting pass into Stephen Ireland's clever run and his poked shot was blocked by on-rushing keeper Edwin van der Sar.

The ball fell to Vassell and he powered in at the second attempt after his first strike was blocked by Van der Sar.

A Tevez turn and shot was parried away by Hart, Cristiano Ronaldo had a shot deflected wide by Dunne and Nemanja Vidic poked as United attempted to equalise.

But City were disciplined and organised as they kept United, who seemed to get more affected by the occasion after going behind, at bay.

And they shocked the hosts again with a second on the stroke of half time.

Left-winger Petrov was a constant threat to United with his pace and delivery and he crossed from the right for Benjani to glance in a header across goal.

Dietmar Hamann had a sweetly struck half-volley saved immediately after the break but City sat back as they soaked up the pressure and tried to catch United out on the counter-attack.

Richards and Dunne were immense for City at the back as they refused to give an out-of-sorts United any kind of sight on goal with a powerful performance.

Giggs did get a rare chance for the home side but his angled shot went wide as United's threat decreased as the game wore on and any expected pressure did not materialise.

Carrick's consolation strike from 18 yards came too late for United, who were without Wayne Rooney and lost their first game at home in the league this season.

City's win saw them complete the first league double over their arch-rivals for the first time since the 1969/70 season.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Alex Fergusson was unavailable for comment

[mrbojangles]

From the city web site:-

Proud Sven looks back on derby win

Sven-Goran Eriksson has hailed his City side after they claimed a derby double in his first season as Blues' boss.

Speaking after his side made it two wins from two against the near neighbours, Sven stated: "Six points against Manchester United in one season is very good.

"Everyone belonging to City, the fans, players and directors, should be very proud of what they did here today.

"I think we deserved to win. We created more chances so we're very happy. It was a great result. I'm really proud of all the players and happy for the fans.

"It was a very important game for us and even more important for United if they want to win the race with Arsenal.

"We had the right spirit and the right attitude. It was a great job. I am extremely pleased and proud of our team. When you go to Old Trafford and win you deserve it.

"Everyone was really up to it and collectively we were fantastic."

[mrbojangles]

What a result and what a performance.This is the first time City have done the double since the year of my birth(1970)and thus i have never experienced such a high with City than this .All City players were superb but i would single out Stevie Ireland.Hes had his detractors this season but hopefully his display yesterday will make them get off the kids back,he was awesome!!!I would keep him playing there and fuc_k Elano.Let him fight to retain his place,i think this is daddy Dicks best position!!!Now lets go for the big push again for europe.On Yesterdsys display it is more than possibile IMHO!!

GET IN THERE CITY!!!!!!

happy days eh Tot

[fletchsmile]

last nights win over United, better than sex !

Nobody told me it was either...or.

The Mrs was a little annoyed tho', when I stopped to shout Goal after only 28 minutes...

Edited February 11, 2008 by fletchsmile

[mrbojangles]

Dunne hails 'brilliant' victory

Derby delight for City skipper

Manchester City captain Richard Dunne could not hide his delight after the derby triumph over Manchester United.

Goals from Darius Vassell and debut-making Benjani Mwaruwari helped City secure their first victory at the home of their bitter rivals since 1974.

Michael Carrick pulled one back for the home side in added time, but it was not enough as Sir Alex Ferguson's side saw their title hopes dented.

The match came just days after the 50th anniversary of the Munich air disaster, with a perfectly-observed minute's silence fully respected by both sets of fans.

Dunne told Sky Sports: "It's brilliant. We've been disappointed with our last few performances and we got stuck into them.

"We knew if we didn't put in a performance we'd be in trouble. We got the goals at the right time and in the second half we worked really hard."

Midfielder Dietmar Hamann praised City's work-rate after they upstaged Sir Alex Ferguson's men.

Hamann told Sky Sports: "We worked ever so hard and didn't give them much space when they went forward. Every time one of our players lost the ball another player covered and won it back.

"We know how good they are going forward and to restrict them to one goal and a handful of chances throughout the 90 minutes showed how well we defended."

Hamann praised the performance of striker Benjani, who marked his first start for City by heading in their second goal.

"He's done ever so well," said Hamann. "He kept the ball well and worked hard. When we put the ball in the channels he was always chasing it and won a few free-kicks.

"He scored a great goal and it was a great debut for him."

[chonabot]

dont worry lads you have your cup final on sunday i am sure they will all play blinders.

3-1 to united though lads.

I'd like to know where our goal will come from?

I love to be proved wrong..

DARIUS VASSELL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Go on my son.

28 mins gone. Vassell has never been on the losing side when scoring for City

I wouldn't mind that being proved wrong today Jack , that would mean a 9 point gap between Spurs and Man city......getting closer ...

Well I dont believe City can continue to play as bad as they have over the past few weeks, nor can I see Spurs keep playing as well as they have for the last few games

Fair play , great win , let's hope this marks the Zenith of City's season

[mrbojangles]

As sports journalists throughout Britain tried to make sense of the amazing scoreline at Old Trafford yesterday, United captain Ryan Giggs has given his honest opinion as to why a team, who hadn’t lost at home this season, capitulated so easily to their long term rivals Manchester City.

” We were just not used to playing in shirt’s without sponsorship. Ever since I started playing in 1991 we have always had a logo on our kit, be it ‘Sharp’ ‘Vodafone’ or nowadays ‘AIG’. It didn’t feel right just playing for Manchester United, my heart wasn’t in it. The players are commodities now. We know we are walking billboards and we feel comfortable with that. I have talked to the other lads and to be honest they all said the same thing. We felt naked out there today. You can’t throw yourself into tackles if you think your souls are hanging out of your shorts.”

We think that recent signing, Brazilian wonderkid, Anderson supported Giggs. Talking to our reporter he said,

” O meu amigo é correto. Eu quis os meus testicals estiveram na demonstração hoje. Os bastardos, o fundo, os arsehol_e ”

Unfortunately our paper does not have access to a Portugese translator. However one can only assume Anderson was not happy about the situation.

On similiar lines, 29 year old, Rio Ferdinand, said,

” I agree with Giggsy. We didn’t stand a chance out there today. The boss allowed us to change our underpants at half time. I wore a pair with ‘Barclaycard’ written down the side, whilst Scholesy had a pair sponsored by ‘Toys ‘R’ Us’. It felt slightly better and I think that reflected in our second half performance but it was too little too late. Do you know that not wearing the ‘AIG’ logo cost us all £30,000 each today. I worked that out at £333 per minute or £5.50 per second. It’s difficult to concentrate on a cross with those kind of figures racing around in your head. I only hope for the clubs sake that they don’t do the same thing in another 50 years time “.

Mr Ferdinand thanked our Sports correspondent and told us that he would expect the bill for the 2 minute interview to be settled by early next week. Further he said that he would like it to be known that his, ‘whiter than white smile’ was thanks to ‘Aquafresh Extreme clean toothpaste’, and that his close shave was due to, ‘Gillette,.. the best a Man can get’

[markr]

Well done city, to the team and the fans!!

Mark

[marshbags]

As sports journalists throughout Britain tried to make sense of the amazing scoreline at Old Trafford yesterday, United captain Ryan Giggs has given his honest opinion as to why a team, who hadn’t lost at home this season, capitulated so easily to their long term rivals Manchester City.

” We were just not used to playing in shirt’s without sponsorship. Ever since I started playing in 1991 we have always had a logo on our kit, be it ‘Sharp’ ‘Vodafone’ or nowadays ‘AIG’. It didn’t feel right just playing for Manchester United, my heart wasn’t in it. The players are commodities now. We know we are walking billboards and we feel comfortable with that. I have talked to the other lads and to be honest they all said the same thing. We felt naked out there today. You can’t throw yourself into tackles if you think your souls are hanging out of your shorts.”

We think that recent signing, Brazilian wonderkid, Anderson supported Giggs. Talking to our reporter he said,

” O meu amigo é correto. Eu quis os meus testicals estiveram na demonstração hoje. Os bastardos, o fundo, os arsehol_e ”

Unfortunately our paper does not have access to a Portugese translator. However one can only assume Anderson was not happy about the situation.

On similiar lines, 29 year old, Rio Ferdinand, said,

” I agree with Giggsy. We didn’t stand a chance out there today. The boss allowed us to change our underpants at half time. I wore a pair with ‘Barclaycard’ written down the side, whilst Scholesy had a pair sponsored by ‘Toys ‘R’ Us’. It felt slightly better and I think that reflected in our second half performance but it was too little too late. Do you know that not wearing the ‘AIG’ logo cost us all £30,000 each today. I worked that out at £333 per minute or £5.50 per second. It’s difficult to concentrate on a cross with those kind of figures racing around in your head. I only hope for the clubs sake that they don’t do the same thing in another 50 years time “.

Mr Ferdinand thanked our Sports correspondent and told us that he would expect the bill for the 2 minute interview to be settled by early next week. Further he said that he would like it to be known that his, ‘whiter than white smile’ was thanks to ‘Aquafresh Extreme clean toothpaste’, and that his close shave was due to, ‘Gillette,.. the best a Man can get’

Is it really all about sponsorship enhancing the way you play and on such an important day and usinig excuses for being well beaten on the day.

The majority of players will i would hope not be associated with such remarks, as they can be taken well out of context.

Credit big time for another positive display by fans and officials alike and another plus in the rehabilitation of what,s good about the game of football.

Without sounding condescending, Red speaks for the majority, not forgetting that he had the compassion to say that the result was secondary on the day and gave mega Kudos to City and graciously accepted such an important outcome of the local Derby.

WE all know what that means no matter who our teams are in local derby,s.

Football was the winner, from all aspects of the day, it must have been brilliant to witness in real time.

marshbags

Edited February 11, 2008 by marshbags

[mrtoad]

The footy forum is a bit quiet at the moment, Bigtoe, MrToad Macenello are keeping a low profile

Lastnight we watched the game & decided to have a "teb". Well. There was a couple of 6-0 4-0 being tossed about but, guess who cleaned up the dosh with a Man City win?

Yep, there's a drink waiting for you MrBJ when your in town next.........After they'd all stopped laughing at my prediction it was "he who laughs last laughs longest"

But we did have a laugh at some of his antics.

[mrbojangles]

I don't know why but i just feel like posting articles today

From the Daily Mirror.

Munich remembered: Oliver Holt on the day Manchester became the city of pride

Some will probably say that Manchester City spoiled the script when they beat Manchester United at Old Trafford yesterday.

Don't listen to them.

Because the truth is that City and their fans helped to turn a fittingly solemn occasion into a magnificent tribute to the spirit of a lost age.

Let's not stint in our praise of the City supporters for honouring the minute's silence to remember the 23 people killed in the Munich air crash. Let's not gloss it over just because nothing went wrong. We would have fallen over ourselves to level the very harshest criticism at them if, as many of us feared, they had desecrated the show of respect for the Busby Babes and the rest of those who died 50 years ago.

AdvertisementBut far from there being any repeat of the catcalls that scarred the Wembley silence last Wednesday, the 3,000 City fans squeezed into a corner of the stadium observed the minute of commemoration impeccably.

Their dignified behaviour ensured that even a momentous result like yesterday's was overshadowed.

Because if ever an occasion was about more than just winning and losing, it was yesterday's salute to Duncan Edwards, Eddie Colman, Roger Byrne, former City goalkeeper Frank Swift and the rest of the dead of Munich.

Yesterday was about respect for human life, respect for the memory of the dead and the loved ones they left behind.

And it was about the putting aside of old and bitter rivalries if only for the blink of an eye. Rarely has 60 seconds of truce seemed so sweet.

"Everybody connected with the club - the players, the management, the directors - should be very proud of what the fans did today," said City boss Sven Goran Eriksson.

"I have never been part of a ceremony like that before and our fans were not just good. They were perfect. It was beautiful."

There are those who will say, with some justification, that basic human decency demanded that City fans should behave exactly as they did.

But it would only have taken one idiot to shout out and spoil everything. That idiot was nowhere to be found.

It meant that the next days and weeks will not be dominated by another agonised debate about how low football has sunk.

It meant that the 72,000 United fans who were here will not have a sacred memory of an important moment in the history of the club tarnished. And it meant that the city of Manchester could take a real pride in a shared decency some thought had gone forever.

Yesterday felt like a day when football was simple and straightforward again.

Not just because the underdog upset the favourite like they often used to do in the old days.

It took us back to the days when fans were fans, not consumers.

When they were not there just to be exploited and disrespected by men like Premier League chief executive Richard Scudamore. It was simple, too, for even more basic reasons like the simplicity of the kit United's players were wearing for the afternoon.

There were forgotten delights. Like the fact United's left-back was wearing a No.3 on his back, the centre-forward was wearing 9 and the centre-half was wearing 5.

How refreshing to see shirts uncluttered by garish advertising slogans, too.

And perimeter hoardings devoted to the names of the dead, not flickering with the names of multinational sponsors.

Just for one half of one afternoon, it was almost possible to forget that English football is busily selling its soul. The only shame was the advertisers couldn't quite see it through.

As soon as the game started, the names of Edwards, Swift and the rest disappeared smartish from the perimeter. To be replaced by Air Asia, AIG, Budweiser and a host of others.

Everything else was perfect. United's insistence on a minute's silence was fully vindicated.

The laying of wreaths in the centre circle by Eriksson and Sir Alex Ferguson, hardly bosom buddies themselves, was also simple and moving. The weight of all that history, all that emotion, sat heavily on United's shoulders, though. They were flat and uninspired.

The football honours belonged to City, for whom Micah Richards was magnificent at centre-half and Martin Petrov, a constant danger as he raided down the left.

In time, those details and others will be forgotten. The result, too, will cease to matter.

But the way City fans fell silent to share in the mourning for the dead of Munich will, like Edwards, Colman, Byrne and Swift, live long in the memory.

[kopite]

well in city. made me smile anyways, truly deserved.

[mrbojangles]

well in city. made me smile anyways, truly deserved.

Cheers kopite. I must admit, many of the "neutrals" felt the same way in the pub

[kopite]

well in city. made me smile anyways, truly deserved.

Cheers kopite. I must admit, many of the "neutrals" felt the same way in the pub

thought the lads did great. after a month of build up, which no doubt got to them, they respected the minutes silence and then the players did city support proud.

from what i saw on TV the lads truly had a great day out. fair play.

what a great season so far for citeh. nice to see the *ahem* friendly mancs doing well.

just leave fourth spot for us though eh?

[mrbojangles]

just leave fourth spot for us though eh?

I don't think we'll be the main danger for that spot, dare i say Everton will be pushing you more than us but we'll keep on trying.

For us, upto now, we have reached the goals so far.

40 points for safety - tick

Beat united at home - tick

Beat united at Old T - Big tick

[kopite]

just leave fourth spot for us though eh?

I don't think we'll be the main danger for that spot, dare i say Everton will be pushing you more than us but we'll keep on trying.

For us, upto now, we have reached the goals so far.

40 points for safety - tick

Beat united at home - tick

Beat united at Old T - Big tick

no i dont think so. 3 points at anfield against the blueshite and they will lose their heads for a few months blaming referees, gordon brown or something else bless em'

good to see a massive club like city back up their fighting and beating teams with flair and logical football

im jealous

champions league soon though

[mrbojangles]

champions league soon though

That would simply be utopia. But i'm tryi ng not to get too excited....just yet

[mrbojangles]

Hamann earns new deal at Man City

Manchester City have rewarded Dietmar Hamann for his good form this season by extending his deal until the end of the 2008/2009 campaign.

The 34-year-old German midfielder has been a major part of the club's challenge for a European place.

He was lauded for his display in the recent 2-1 win at Manchester United, which left City only three points off the fourth Champions League spot.

City signed Hamann on a free transfer after he left Liverpool in July 2006.

He had initially moved to England's top flight when he was signed by Newcastle from Bayern Munich in 1998 and spent a season at St James' Park before switching to Anfield.

He helped Liverpool to their 2005 Champions League triumph - coming on as a second-half substitute as the Reds came back from 3-0 down to eventually beat AC Milan on penalties.

Hamann was at Liverpool for seven years and made 283 appearances for the club, scoring 11 goals.

He agreed to a switch to Bolton before changing his mind and moved to City, who paid the Reebok Stadium outfit compensation, in July 2006.

His first season under Stuart Pearce was interrupted by injury but he has prospered since Sven-Goran Eriksson took over as City manager in July 2007.

Hamann has made 28 outings during the present campaign compared to 19 last season.

[mrbojangles]

From the City web site:-

Fitness boost for Blues

Valeri Bojinov and Michael Johnson have handed Sven-Goran Eriksson a welcome boost after coming through Monday’s reserves game unscathed.

The City boss saw both in action himself at St James Park, with Johnson playing for the first 45 minutes in his first game since mid-December.

Bojinov caught the eye by scoring as a second-half substitute, but Sven is cautious over rushing back the 21-year-old, who was out for five months with a cruciate ligament injury.

“Bojinov is not ready for the first team yet,” says Sven. “I don’t know how many weeks he will take but Monday night was good for him. He played for 20 minutes, scored a nice goal and you can see that he’s a real football player.

“He understands the game, he’s technically very good and sees things when trying to link up with team mates. It’s like having a new signing but I doubt very much that he would be ready for Everton. But he’s got a big smile on his face now, he’s very happy.”

Johnson has been on the sidelines with a niggling abdominal injury since the Carling Cup defeat to Spurs, and of the 19-year-old Sven adds.

“Michael did very well for 45 minutes, and the positive is that he had no discomfort afterwards. The reserves have another game next week, so I hope he’ll have more than 45 minutes then.

“I hope he has no setbacks, and if things go as I think he would be ready for Everton.

“In football you never know, but it looks like we’ll have most of the players available for Everton.”

[mrbojangles]

From the City web site:-

Vassell and Eriksson lead praise for Mr Reliable

As was reported after the historic derby victory on Sunday, skipper Richard Dunne very nearly missed the game due to illness, but as Sven-Goran Eriksson and Darius Vassell agree - the captain didn’t let his side down.

Sven told us how he almost had to do without Dunne at Old Trafford: “It was very close. Only on the morning of the game we knew he would play.

“Richard didn’t go to the hotel on Saturday night, he was in bed and had a fever and a bad throat. The doctor went to see him and on Saturday night I thought he would not play.

“But at 10am on Sunday morning he turned up and said: ‘I’m ready.’ That’s fantastic – that’s the captain. He was incredible during the game and he was all over the pitch.

“It’s right to talk about the captain, although we shouldn’t just talk about individuals, but all of them. It was a huge task they performed out there together and they helped each other with a lot of spirit.”

Another player who covered every blade of grass again and opened the scoring was Darius Vassell.

Of his skipper, he added: “You can’t knock him for anything. He’s a great leader and a great captain.

“To go out there and play with him in the team is a great boost to any of the players. All credit to him, he did well at Old Trafford and was a rock at the back, as usual.

“He’s Mr Reliable, I know that, but it takes some doing.”

[scousemouse]

The footy forum is a bit quiet at the moment, Bigtoe, MrToad Macenello are keeping a low profile

Lastnight we watched the game & decided to have a "teb". Well. There was a couple of 6-0 4-0 being tossed about but, guess who cleaned up the dosh with a Man City win?

Yep, there's a drink waiting for you MrBJ when your in town next.........After they'd all stopped laughing at my prediction it was "he who laughs last laughs longest"

Shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii#e !!!! , I wish I'd have been there to win some cash aswell Chavy .

Any ideas ( Mr toad ) on when the next shin dig is going to be ??? . I have got the first 3 weeks in March off and have NO excuses for missing the next beer night , and I do need to see that pic of Chavy .

[mrbojangles]

A couple of snippets from the papers:-

The Sun

"Sven lets secret slip"

SVEN GORAN ERIKSSON claims he has unearthed the secret to beating Manchester United — shackle Cristiano Ronaldo and run until you drop!

The Manchester City boss has taken six points off Alex Ferguson this season with back-to-back derby victories.

Sunday’s 2-1 triumph at Old Trafford was City’s first league win at United since 1974.

Eriksson said his players pulled off their double by refusing to allow Ronaldo and Co to take control.

He said: “There’s no trick to beating United. You just have to work hard.

“You know when you meet teams like this you have to have legs, track them down and not let them play football.

“If you let players like Cesc Fabregas at Arsenal and Ronaldo have the ball . . . they are too good. You have to be aggressive and keep the team very compact.

“That is the secret — but keep it a secret, OK!”

The Mirror

"Richard Dunne could leave Manchester City in the summer"

Richard Dunne may exit Manchester City for a knockdown £1.5million this summer.

Dunne is understood to be frustrated at the impasse in talks over a new deal and could take advantage of a FIFA ruling to leave.

Article 17 of FIFA's transfer regulations says that players over the age of 28 who have served at least two years can buy out the remaining 12 months of their contract.

The £10million-rated City skipper, who is being eyed up by Newcastle, could leave once he has paid City around £1.5m.

Dunne, 28, is aware of the FIFA ruling but would prefer to stay and commit his best years to the club.

However, the defender is disappointed with the club's opening offer and wants a pay rise which reflects his age and status as City's best performer of the last few years. He is currently on £28,000 a week.

[mrbojangles]

From the BBC Micah Richards column

The last thing manager Sven-Goran Eriksson said to the Manchester City players before we went out at Old Trafford on Sunday was "don't be afraid".

He told us that we were better than Manchester United so we had nothing to worry about.

We believed it. He gave us that confidence and we did it - we beat them.

It was an amazing day. City had not won there for 34 years, so to be part of a team to manage it is phenomenal.

Our preparation was for the same as any other match, we all met up in a hotel the night before the game, drove to the training ground then went to Old Trafford by coach.

We always stay in the same place in Manchester city centre, whenever we play in the north-west, home or away.

You may think it is a bit strange but I like it. It is good for team bonding.

We get there at about 6pm and always have a general knowledge quiz the night before the game, which is run by Les Chapman our kit-man. We do not split into teams, it is every man for himself!

The best by far is Didi Hamann, he has got a lot of knowledge, and the worst has got to be Kelvin Etuhu. He is actually good academically but some of his answers are ridiculous.

Me, I'm in the middle somewhere. I have not really got a specialist subject, although I normally do well with the music questions.

We are normally up until 11pm but we went to bed a bit earlier on Saturday because of the early kick-off on Sunday.

We were up early in the morning and out and about at 10am for a team walk, then we had our pre-match meal, which is pasta or rice with chicken - the usual stuff.

We arrived at Old Trafford at 12.15pm. There was a lot to think about before the game, with the minute's silence for the Munich air disaster. I wouldn't say it distracted me ahead of the match but, of course, you notice what is happening and take it in.

As soon as the whistle was blown though, it was strange how I blocked all of that out and just concentrated on the game.

I was really impressed by the City fans during the silence. For them to keep quiet, especially after what happened before last week's England international, was a good thing.

And they were absolutely amazing during the match too. In fact, that was the best I have ever seen them, they just did not stop singing.

The City players were really up for the game too. We wanted to show it was not only United who were turning up and that we had quality as well.

I watched the match again before training on Monday morning and I noticed a couple of tackles that myself and Richard Dunne made - we definitely made sure we got stuck into them!

It was a great feeling when Darius Vassell scored our first goal and, when the second went in, it was almost unreal.

The main thing that was said to us at half-time was to keep our focus.

Apparently, United win a huge percentage of their games in the last 20 minutes of the match. We were warned about that - and not to think we had won when it got to that stage.

We were disappointed to concede a goal at the end but that did not matter when the final whistle went. It was the best moment of my club career.

I have heard that United have blamed the defeat on player fatigue but I do not think that is a valid excuse.

I may not have played for England last week but I had to go through the same as their players and train twice a day.

It wasn't just United's players who did it, we all did.

Plus England were at home. Many other players at City were away playing abroad so they had flights to contend with too.

[mrbojangles]

Quite a good story here:- http://www.flickr.com/photos/23856216@N08/...269049/sizes/o/

[kopite]

*ahem*