throw a coin at the opposing team… ?! Okay, we’ll come back to that.
Sunday was derby day in Manchester: United vs. City. Blue hosting Red. 2nd against 1st in the early league standings. So, pretty much epic on all fronts.
Last year City won both derby matches, including a victory of monumental proportions away to United at Old Trafford that could be argued handed them the league, since they ended level on points but ahead on goal difference at the end of the season. (My heart still hurts a little thinking about that game.)
To continue on my theme of not really doing a full review of anything, here are my comments on the game:
Wayne Rooney was immense. Showing up at the right time for the second goal. Creating good space for himself on the first goal. His vision, his tracking back, and every other aspect of his game were spot on (except for a few passes that didn’t come off quite as he (and the rest of us) had hoped they would.) He was the man of the match, without a doubt. His 10 derby goals are a testament for what he has meant to United and what he will continue to mean for the Red Devils.
That’s kind of all I want to say… but, since that doesn’t seem like enough, here are some extra tidbits:
It was good to have Valencia back on the right side, and I hope with some more game time he’ll get in a few better crosses in the coming games. Ashley Young had a great game and it’s not often I find myself saying that. I have a bit of a man crush on Robin van Persie. And, if it wasn’t him, then it would probably be Rafael. It’s too bad that someone didn’t step in front of Yaya Toure’s shot because if that hadn’t resulted in a goal, David De Gea’s two saves right before that would have been contenders for save of the year. Zaboleta’s goal was fantastic. There isn’t much I like about Samir Nasri, but I find myself strangely fond of his right foot this morning.
Okay, that pretty much wraps that up.
What? Really? Okay fine… The officiating: Yes, Smalling handled the ball. Yes, Evra should have been awarded a PK. I still think Young was offside. Yes, the ref should have given Toure the advantage when he was on a breakaway rather than halting the play to hand Rooney a yellow card. It pretty much all evened out. Pretty sure the game would have ended with the 3 points going to United even if all of the above had been called “correctly.” Argue with me if you want.
Okay, now, that pretty much wraps it up.
Wait, what? Oh, yeah, I guess I should explain the title of this post. You are correct, my team didn’t let me down. So, what am I talking about? In the 92nd minute, after Robin van Persie had scored the winner for United, a City fan threw a coin out of the stands that struck Rio Ferdinand in the face, opening a gash that forced him to come off the pitch to get the blood cleaned up.
I’m fairly passionate when it comes to football (soccer). I will readily admit that I am a fan in the true sense of the word (fanatic) when it comes to my two teams: Los Angeles Galaxy and Manchester United. But never at any point when I’ve experienced a frustrating and demoralizing loss (including a certain derby last season already mentioned above) did I think, “Hey, I’m very upset and I just happen to have this coin in my pocket, maybe I should throw it.”
Who does that?
The Matticus Kingdom 
I agree. Who does that! It was sickening to see someone who claims to be a ‘football fan’ do such a thing. It’s too low, even for a city fan!
Yes, I don’t see how you can be a fan of the beautiful game and stoop to such low behavior, no matter who you support. Passion = good. Violence = bad. Seems pretty basic to me.