Those results provide tangible validation for the fears that linger around Saturday’s final for a lot of City fans. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer beat City far more than expected - taking us back to the peril of that favourites tag.
Jose Mourinho spoiled the City party in April 2018 when a home derby win would have clinched the earliest-ever title. Louis van Gaal oversaw a victory at the Etihad Stadium. United have suffered some humbling defeats in that time, but they have not always gone quietly. “It was payback for everything,” as one fan said, on the way home from the same venue last month after City beat Sheffield United in this season’s semi-finals. The FA Cup semi-final against United at Wembley in April 2011 is the day that the landscape changed forever, in short. There is so much on the line, so much recent history to live up to.Ĭity have had plenty to shout about from Manchester derbies going back to even before Ferguson left Old Trafford at the end of the 2012-13 season. Perhaps it is the status as overwhelming favourites which adds so much stress to Saturday’s final for City supporters. As the seconds tick down to kick-off, after motorway service stations have been skipped and Wembley Way avoided as far as possible, there is the game itself to feel sick over. Only in hindsight, though it is not so enjoyable in the present. These are days to be cherished for those following from afar, too, City’s golden era unfolding before their eyes. The journey planning, the quests to get hold of match tickets, the stress of just everything, all while the sun shines across the country, even in Manchester, could all be looked back on so fondly in years to come. Never mind navigating a way to Turkey via the most convoluted yet cheapest route possible, it is hard enough for them to get to London, given the nationwide train strikes. This is history in the making, the days of City fans’ lives. Follow live coverage of Manchester City vs Inter Milan in the Champions League final.What’s more, were they to beat United at Wembley, it would put them just one game from history - the opportunity to beat Inter Milan in the following weekend’s Champions League final in Istanbul and complete the treble.
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