Saiyed Karim
To relive the last time both Manchester teams dominated the English Premier League, we would have to go way back to the 2017/2018 season when Jose Mourinho was still in charge at Old Trafford, and Pep Guardiola was just finding his feet at the Etihad. Those days were long gone, and both sets of fans would not have minded reliving them again, as long as it meant domination.
Still, a steep decline of a rebuilding Red Devils’ team and the rise of Klopp’s Liverpool ultimately drove both teams apart and way from the top of the table for a while, until now. Going into the late stage of the season, the two Manchester teams are flying high in the EPL and looking unstoppable as they charge back to the fore of the league.
With such a rich and long tradition for both teams, it is no surprise that they have fans as far-reaching as Sweden, who can now take advantage of the ComeOn to put some skin in the game for their favorite team via the sportsbooks.
Manchester City completed the month of January unbeaten, winning all their games and scoring over 30 goals. The resurgence of Pep’s men after a slow start to the season coincides with the excellent run of form of midfield talisman Ilkay Gundogan and the defensive consistency the team is finding, especially in Stones and new recruit, Dias.
Gabriel Jesus has also been a factor, but the all-around effort by the players is paying dividends on the pitch. Defense has made all the difference for Guardiola’s team, who now have just above 20 clean sheets this season in the league. Ederson has been again stellar between the posts, but John Stones has been a steady hand, even earning the nod from reporters as the best defender in England at the moment.
For the Red Devils, their position is even more impressive when you recall that the team could find no traction early in the first half of the season. Bruno Fernandes was the only bright spark in what was a disorganised team swirling with controversies over Paul Pogba, Harry Maguire, and the abilities of coach Solksjaer to lead the team.
All of that looks to be behind the team now as they sit second in the league and are hitting their strides perfectly. A 9-0 thrashing of Southampton put everyone else on notice, but United will need to do a more consistent job if they want to displace their city rivals.
Bruno Fernandes is the catalyst to everything the team does, but Marcus Rashfor, Anthony Martial, and Paul Pogba are finding their form at just the right stage of the season.
Both teams face each other for the final time this season, on March 6th, a meeting which could well be one to decide who will be champion.
