Manchester City On This Day: First live Manchester derby

The current Manchester City side, under Pep Guardiola, are doing fantastically well. Occasionally you have games, like Tuesday night, when the result is probably a long way from your pre-game expectations.

It certainly is a measure of just how far we have come, in just the time since Sheikh Mansour took control, almost a decade ago. We all remember the man at the helm of United at that time saying we were just noisy neighbors.

But what about before he took the reigns at United. What about those barren years, for both Manchester clubs? In the mid 1980’s, United were more like the current Arsenal side. Rather than the ‘world beaters’ we are led to believe they were, they struggled.

More from Man City Square

Three FA Cup victories were the only glory since they last won the League in 1966-67, or the following European trophy. They had even suffered relegation and regained promotion in the interim period, with not a single League Cup to show.

City, on the other hand, had won the League, FA Cup, European Cup Winners Cup and the League Cup twice. Both sides entered the 1980’s in mediocre form though. Neither side had any chance of lifting the title. United finished third in the 1981-82 season, but were a good nine points off the top by the end.

But this is supposed to be a City site, I hear you cry. Yes it is, but I never miss the opportunity to put the boot in when it’s needed. But you are right, there is a reason for the trip down memory lane. On this day, 31 years ago, Manchester City hosted United in the first live broadcast of a derby game.

With this pre-season having the first Manchester derby to be played outside England, I figured it would be a good subject matter. So how did the teams line up, and how much did they cost?

The differences between then and now are amazing. Other than only allowing one substitute to be names on the bench, there was only one foreign player, and ten home-grown lads between them!

Jimmy Frizzell took his place on the City bench, with Ron Atkinson opposite. On the field, in the City sky blue, were the following:

Perry Suckling, John Gidman, Mick McCarthy, Kenny Clements, Clive Wilson, Steve Redmond, Neil McNabb, Tony Grealish, Paul Simpson, Imre Varadi and David White. On the bench was Ian Brightwell to make up City’s fifth home-grown player. A side costing 255k old English pounds!

In the other half (at a cost of 4.29 million!!) was the United side. Chris Turner, John Sivebaek, Paul McGrath, Graeme Hogg, Arthur Albiston, Gordon Strachan, Bryan Robson, Norman Whiteside, Peter Barnes, Peter Davenport and Frank Stapleton.

Of course, Peter Barnes was actually a City product. John Gidman, in our defense on that day, a two-time FA Cup winner for United. The game itself failed to live up to expectations, even for back then. It was actually an early six pointer with City 22nd. United were only four points ahead in 20th.

We hadn’t beaten United for a number of seasons, and could ill-afford a loss. It wasn’t good form though, and Ron Atkinson had never lost one. In fact, the last blue victory came at Maine Road back in February 1981. This game seemed to be heading the same way as United took the lead through Stapleton. Heading the ball past a sprawling City keeper to put the visitors a goal ahead.

Next: 8 points from the Carabao.

City responded well though, pulling back through Mick McCarthy. The now Ipswich manager leveled with another header although, as you might expect, didn’t impress either chairman. Ron Atkinson was fired days later, while Frizzell was lasted until the end of the season. Although he would stay on as Assistant.