The rivalry between city enemies is never lacking in intensity.
Fortunately, Premier League teams focus on physical confrontation, and their tackles are relatively clean.
Neymar has the most say on this; after arriving in the Premier League, his injury situation significantly improved.
Unfortunately, the old injuries accumulated during his six years in Ligue 1 are irreversible, and he will inevitably miss some matches.
At 33, Neymar is no longer the youthful prodigy; his career has begun to decline.
Even so, the Brazilian, coming on as a substitute, should not be underestimated.
In the 72nd minute of the match, Manchester City pressed high, and De Bruyne controlled the attacking rhythm.
Rice is not easy to deal with; a clash between masters is often decided in an instant.
In De Bruyne's vision, Haaland was heavily marked.
Foden on the right was suppressed by Luke Shaw and struggled.
On the left, Kaminski, who came on as a substitute, made a run—a chance!
De Bruyne paused; he had intended to pass back but changed his mind, gently pushing the ball to the right, preparing to send a long pass.
It was this momentary hesitation that allowed Rice to slide tackle, cleanly winning the ball.
"De Bruyne was a bit slow, Rice won the ball, Manchester United launched a counter-attack!"
As Zhan Jun commentated, Rice sent the ball forward, leaving the actively pressing De Bruyne empty-handed.
Pasalic received the ball and continued to advance, but facing Bernardo Silva's press, he somewhat mindlessly kicked the ball towards the Manchester City penalty area.
Erik ten Hag was expressionless on the sidelines, cursing inwardly, "Is this guy an idiot? He could have passed left or right, but he chose the middle. I don't know if Gao Nuo can hold it."
Rashford on the left had a clear space in front of him, and his teammate's passing choice left him very dissatisfied; he was already offside, so he had no choice but to stop his run and be caught by Walker behind him.
Neymar on the right was slower and had no offside pressure, still sprinting towards the penalty area.
"Damn it, I can't win!"
Gao Nuo shielded the ball with his back to the goal in the center, with Rodri right behind him, and Manchester City's center-back partners lurking not far away.
The passing lane back was blocked by Bernardo Silva, Rodri grabbed his shirt at the waist, and a big, dark foot swept back and forth between his legs.
Gao Nuo stuck out his backside, temporarily safe due to his long legs.
"If I turn and dribble past, it shouldn't be a big problem, but those two muscle-bound guys will definitely rush up, and being trapped will be bad."
Thoughts flashed through his mind, and Gao Nuo chose to wait for teammates' support.
Rashford had just returned from an offside position and, seeing an opportunity, started another run, his sharp movement posing a significant threat.
Gao Nuo's vision wasn't great and he didn't notice Rashford's anti-offside run.
In his peripheral vision, Neymar made a sudden stop, changed direction, and accelerated, sprinting towards the big penalty area; Ake slipped and fell a body length behind.
Gao Nuo didn't hesitate, delivering a pass that wasn't exquisite but was very accurate, giving Neymar a shooting opportunity.
"Here!" Rashford waved and shouted, trying to get Neymar's attention.
Ignoring his teammate's shouts, Neymar stopped the ball and feigned a shot.
Laporte, with his hands behind his back, extended a leg from the side to intercept, blocking a large shooting angle.
Could the ball only go to the near post?
Neymar began to dance on the field!
His swinging right leg avoided the ball, and his left foot passed behind his right leg, pulling the rolling ball back to the left.
Laporte had already swept past him!
Stones stepped forward again to block.
Neymar's left foot executed a 'Ronaldo chop' move.
Stones swept past him!
Only Ederson was left in front of the goal, and Neymar was finally ready to shoot!
"Bang!"
Manchester United fans' hearts felt like they were squeezed.
Ake!
Ake, arriving from behind, kicked the ball away.
Neymar's magnificent performance was forced to a close.
"Oh—"
The sound of Manchester United fans' disappointment was incessant.
Erik ten Hag covered his face on the sidelines; from his angle, he saw it clearly, missing a golden opportunity, which was already disappointing enough.
"Neymar's series of moves was brilliant, but unfortunately, the final shot was blocked."
"Ah, this ball was a bit too drawn out; no matter how brilliant the dribbling, it doesn't lead to a goal. Passing to Rashford would have been a good option too."
If Rashford could hear Zhang's commentary, he would definitely give a thumbs up.
He was fuming on the left wing; two wide-open spaces, and his teammates didn't pass, and Neymar was even worse, just focused on his fancy tricks, needlessly wasting an attack.
Shrugging helplessly, frustration had overwhelmed Rashford's heart; he didn't look at Neymar, turning and walking towards the penalty area.
Missing the shot made Neymar lose his balance, sitting on the ground, his heart full of helplessness, "I'm old after all; that Ronaldo chop was too slow. If I were two years younger, no! One year younger would be enough, this goal would definitely have gone in."
"That was amazing, my idol." Gao Nuo reached out, grabbed Neymar, and pulled him up with force.
Neymar showed a bitter smile, "Kid, a beautiful pass, but what a pity."
Gao Nuo, mimicking how others usually do it, slapped Neymar on the backside, "What pity? Ederson was scared half to death by you."
Neymar tensed up, then gently patted Gao Nuo back, "Kid, you were a bit rude just now! Use this much force."
Gao Nuo's already flushed face deepened a few shades, and he scratched his head, saying, "Hehe, accident, accident."
With that distraction, the gloomy mood was swept away; Neymar put his arm around Gao Nuo's neck, his smile returning, "Come on, let's kick their butts!"
In the 73rd minute, Manchester United took a corner kick, and Haaland didn't give anyone else a chance to shine, clearing the ball at the near post.
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It was Kaminski who got to the second ball.
The Polish international became the winter transfer window's most expensive player, joining Manchester City from Wolfsburg for 105 million.
When the transfer happened, there was a chorus of doubts.
Guardiola waved his hand, and public opinion was temporarily suppressed.
Kaminski did not betray Manchester City's trust.
After joining the team, he replaced Grealish, playing 15 times as a left winger, scoring 5 goals and providing 8 assists.
His efficient performance once again proved Guardiola's keen eye.
He's fast, has sharp runs and shots, and while his idol is Kuba, he longs to play like Robben.
Kaminski dribbled forward, with Pasalic chasing behind him.
At this point, Manchester United's backline only had two full-backs; Vanderson stepped up to intercept.
Luke Shaw quickly retreated, as if facing a formidable enemy.
Because Haaland had already put his foot on the gas, continuously overtaking players from his own half.
Past midfield, Haaland's speed didn't diminish, and Rice was about to be overtaken.
Kaminski on the left changed direction, dribbled past Vanderson, and cut diagonally into the penalty area.
Luke Shaw faced a somewhat grim situation, retreating sideways, his gaze constantly shifting between Kaminski and Haaland.
"Damn it, Vanderson is out of stamina, he's so easily beaten. Haaland has already surpassed Rice, this is too dangerous! Holy crap! Who is that?"
Luke Shaw forced himself to calm down, saw the red shadow behind Haaland, and decisively abandoned the middle.
When rushing towards Kaminski, he tried to block the passing lane as much as possible, allowing the opponent to shoot.
In Luke Shaw's judgment, stopping the ball from being played across the middle was the top priority; Kaminski's shot was definitely less threatening than a pass.
At the same time, Luke Shaw's block bought time for the red figure behind Haaland.
In such an important match, Kaminski dared not act rashly.
"Jakub! Here!"
Hearing Haaland's voice, he no longer hesitated, stopping sharply to create space, and playing the ball across the middle.
The entire stadium of fans widened their eyes; more than one figure appeared in front of the ball!