Victors among the Equals...

For decades, they sulked in the shadows, as their cross-town rivals reveled in all the glory the footballing fraternity could offer. Manchester City watched with envy, as Manchester United built one of the biggest brands in the world. Infamously dubbed the "Noisy Neighbours" by the all-conquering Red Devils, City fans lived through the agony of always being the "Other club in Manchester". When Manchester United were on the top of the world, winning the Champions League in 1998-99, City were fighting to earn promotion to the Second division of the domestic league.

 More than 3 decades, the fans waited, and then came a promise of revolution. Acquired, first by a Thai billionaire, and then by multi-billionaire Sheikh, City could finally dream of things that United considered their own birth-rights. And yet, they were still considered second-best, their victories an aberration rather than regularities.And then, a fine afternoon at Old Trafford, the home of their fiercest adversaries, changed it all. Sunday, October 23, 2011, was the day Manchester City have ever dreamed of. It wasn't just about beating Manchester United, that feat had been achieved plenty of times already. It wasn't about attempting to steal the crown, they threatened last year as well. It was all about stature. Earlier, City's victories over Manchester United were thought of as David beating the Goliath. On Sunday, Manchester City were the victors in a battle of equals. No one dares considering them inferior now. No one writes off their meteoric rise, even if it was built on the never-emptying of their Abu Dhabi owners. Manchester City are no more just a force to reckon with. They are THE team to beat.

Manchester City have arrived on the Centre-stage, and it'll take a lot to give them a beating!

The 6-1 Story :
Of course, Manchester United contributed massively to their own downfall. Watching the game, it was shocking to see how badly United folded up in last 5 minutes. Yes, they were down to 10-men, yes, City were running rampant. But the fact was that, United simply seemed to give up. It was so uncharacteristic of a team, who's success was built on the foundations of grit and the devilish approach, rather than beauty. Ferguson later lamented that his team went all out in pursuit of a favourable result at 1-3, rather than going into damage-control mode. I strongly disagreed. They hardly threatened for a moment, since Darren Fletcher curled the ball in to give them a glimmer of hope. There were simply no excuses. Not a single United player seemed bothered, when Dzeko scored City's fourth from a corner. So often we have seen United getting galvanised after a sending-off, attacking with even greater menace. But no one came charging in, as first Silva and then Dzeko ran on goal, and coolly shot past the hapless David de Gea.

The Score-line said it all....

So where does this leave us? The footballing world may have felt the mighty tremors of the result on Sunday, but that doesn't mean Manchester United's stature has diminished even by a bit. Yes, they will have to cope up with the taunts by the rivals, having supplied many of their own after that 8-2 mauling of Arsenal in August. But one horrific defeat hardly makes the 19-time Champions a bad team overnight. Does that defeat mean Nani or Welbeck are bad prospects for future? Or that Wayne Rooney is suddenly a mediocre player, rather than a genius as he is considered to be? Empires just don't crumble overnight. For the outside world, Manchester United still have the charisma, still have the recognition as the biggest club in England. And then, Chelsea are always there, lurking in the shadows this time round, but always ready to pounce.

We may have witnessed a massive paradigm shift in English and European football on Sunday, but count the established ones out at your own peril. Having said that, City have again showed that spending money on logical footballing brains can indeed get you to success. For all those still scoffing, there should be no naive belief that Manchester United and Barcelona's success were built without an ounce of financial strength. Love them or hate them, the other team from Manchester are no more the Noisy push-overs, they are now the ones with the loudest roar!