The Miracle in Manchester

(NOTE: This was from a previous blog that I didn't really do anything with but I figured I would go ahead and post it here again.)

Wow.

It's two days later and I still can't get over how great a finish that was. That was one of the greatest, most dramatic moments in sports that I can remember for a long time. And that is coming from someone who was born and raised in Knoxville, Tennessee, where football is king and soccer is merely an afterthought in the sports world (more on that later). In case you missed it, here's a link to the game winner. And here's another one showing Manchester United at the moment when City scored. Truly incredible stuff.

Here's the background: Manchester United and Manchester City play their home matches five miles apart. Manchester United is New York Yankees of English football. They have 19 League titles, the most of any club in League History. Manchester City had a grand total of two titles coming into the final day, the last one coming 44 years ago. Before the start of this season, Man City went on a spending splurge, having recently been bought by an extremely wealthy oil-based ownership group. This allowed them to build an extremely competitive squad for the upcoming campaign (and drew questions of the ethics of simply buying stars instead of developing players). Their spending proved to be worthwhile in the early stages of the season - they went in to Old Trafford and absolutely embarrassed Man United by a score of 6-1 (!). Man City found themselves comfortably on top of the Premier League Table for most of the first half of the season. However their form dipped mid-season and Man United overtook them for the lead.

United managed to build up an 8 point lead with five weeks to play in the season. City's title hopes were all but gone and their dreams of finishing ahead of their rivals were shattered. But remarkably United unexpectedly dropped points to lesser competition in some of their following games while City kept winning, including a 1-0 victory over United at the Etihad Stadium that saw City retake the league lead on goal difference. Both squads managed to win their following game, setting up an epic final day.

For Man City, it was as simple as it gets: win the game, win the title. They were even on points with Man United but ahead on an insurmountable goal difference of 8 goals. All they needed to do was beat bottom-dwellers Queens Park Rangers at home, who came in to the final day needing some help to avoid relegation. Man United had to win and have City either draw or lose, or tie and have City lose. All league games were played at the same time so no team would have a competitive advantage over another.

City managed to go ahead in the first half of a Pablo Zabaleta strike that the QPR keeper failed properly handle. Man United also scored in the first half through Wayne Rooney. However QPR equalized a mere three minutes after halftime, giving United a hand on the trophy. QPR was reduced to 10 men minutes later when Joey Barton was shown a straight red for an off the ball altercation with Carlos Tevez. Shockingly, QPR went ahead 2-1 off a counter attack ten minutes later, giving United a firmer grip on the title.

All hope seemed lost for City fans as they headed into five minutes of stoppage time, still needing two goals to take the title back from United, still leading 1-0. Nothing short of a miracle would save them.

And that's exactly what they got.

David Silva whipped in a cross of a corner kick that Edin Dzeko directed into the back of the net. The score    was 2-2 with only four minutes left in the season, the title still up for grabs. Meanwhile at the Stadium of Light the ref blew the final whistle, Man United having held on against Sunderland and champions for the moment. But all they could do was wait. And then two minutes later, Sergio Aguero, one of the many expensive signings made by City before the season, scored with a clinical finish near-post, snatching the title away from United and sending the Ethiad into delirium. Moments later Sir Alex Ferguson and Man United players looked around in utter disbelief as the news came into the Stadium of Light, that their 20th League title and been taken away by their "noisy neighbours."