City Shoulders Aside United in ‘Derby of All Derbies’

In case the millions of viewers missed its significance, Patrice Evra, the Manchester United captain, explained the consequences should City take the title. “If they win the Premier League, a page is turned and it’s a revolution,” he told The Sun before the game. “And revolutions have always been about Manchester United.”

That may be about to change. City has not won the Premier League title yet; the teams are tied with 83 points with two games remaining, but City has the edge in goal difference, which is the tiebreaker.

City has been building to this moment since the club’s takeover by Sheik Mansour of Abu Dhabi in 2008. Since then, it is estimated that the team has spent more than $1 billion on player transfers. So far, City has won only the F.A. Cup, last year, but this may be its year.

Roberto Mancini, the City manager, remains cautious.

“United are still favorites,” he said after the game. But the east of Manchester is already rising.

Last week, Alex Ferguson, the United manager, said that fans of the victorious side would wake Tuesday morning to “the most important day of their lives.” Fans of both teams will now meet at water coolers across the city to discuss the fortunes of their clubs.

City supporters have years of hurt to erase. While their neighbors have soared higher and higher — United is looking for its 20th top-flight title this season — City has plumbed the depths. It was playing in the third division of English soccer just 14 years ago.

And all the while, United has toyed with City not only on the field, but in their heads, too. Like a great power failing to recognize a tin-pot regime, Ferguson dismissed City as a “small club with a small mentality.” This week, he finally acknowledged City as a rival, calling this match the “derby of all derbies.”

City supporters came in the tens of thousands Monday. In the afternoon sunshine, they congregated outside Etihad Stadium hours before kickoff, a patchwork of differing nationalities united in light blue. Even those without tickets appeared to drink in the scene before disappearing into pubs to drink some more. United’s faithful, a meager 2,620 of them, arrived under the radar, dressed in nondescript clothing, hiding their team’s red under coats and sweaters, herded by the police.

As soon as the teams took to the field, it was clear that Mancini had answered the call to arms. He crammed his lineup with attackers, the Argentines Carlos Tévez and Sergio Agüero leading the line; the playmaker David Silva tucked in behind, viewing the world 500 frames a second as he looked for the perfect pass; Samir Nasri on the wing, trying to spread the condensed ranks of United players.

As expected, United, the defending champion, arrived in tight order. Ferguson started Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes, his two most experienced midfielders, with the idea of throwing a security blanket across the field.

On the stroke of halftime, City broke through. Silva swung a corner into the penalty area, and Vincent Kompany, City’s Belgian captain, slipped through the gap to head the ball past goalkeeper David de Gea.

A sonic boom pulsed around the stadium. In the second half, Ferguson flipped on the sideline. Looking about as stable as a lump of plutonium, he shouted at Mancini. The men were separated by a single official before backup arrived.

Of course, the crowd loved it. At the final whistle, fans broke out in song, waving United’s fans off with Oasis’s “Wonderwall.” Then Liam Gallagher, the Oasis lead singer and a City fan, burst into the press room. He was followed by Kompany. “Viva la Belgium,” Gallagher said as the men embraced. “I love Mancini,” he added for good measure. “He’s almost as cool as me.”

The rest of England pondered the result. One suspects that the neutrals are happy to see United challenged for a change. On the other hand, they could be worried by the birth of a behemoth.

“City used to be every football fan’s second club,” said one of their supporters before the game. “I don’t want us to be loved.”

City has two matches to be played before the title can be claimed, but it has its destiny in its hands. A red sky had settled over Manchester, but the dominant color in this city on Monday was blue.