Sunday bash

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Football speaks of the legend of great derbies. Derby della Capitale or the Rome derby when Lazio take on AS Roma is one. The Derby della Madonnina, which happens at the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza or the San Siro as it is more commonly known where Inter and AC Milan fight it out is another popular one.

Closer to the home of football we have the Tyne-Wear derby between Newcastle and Sunder-land and the Merseyside derby between Liverpool and Everton, which are fiercely contested.
Then there is the Clasico, which everyone from Guillem Balague to every fishmonger at Bow & Begum Bazar has expert opinion on. El Clasico is not a derby like the others by the simple fact that the two teams that contest it play in two very different cities of Spain that are separated by over 600 kms but bridged by a common hunger to win trophies that has been etched in the history books.
A very similar story being written in the latest chapters of the same book is the one of the Blues of London and the Reds of Manchester.
Since 2004-05, no team in England’s top flight has played Manchester United more times than Chelsea. These two teams have met in every competition and their fortunes have always been divided.
United have won 13 trophies in that time and Chelsea 12 but Manchester United have played the Club World Cup, which Chelsea still have to participate in this year.
History tells us that in the Premier League, Manchester United have won 29 times at Stamford Bridge to Chelsea’s 22 with the spoils being shared 19 times. United have scored 118 times and conceded 102. But one has to go back to 2002 to pre-Abramovic era before you find a scoreline that reflects the record of Manchester United’s dominance at the home of the Blues. Since then, United have lost 6, drawn 4 and won just once and that was in the Champions League.
The last time, I predicted a Spurs win over Chelsea in the London derby, it seemed to be on the money till around 60 minutes when Tottenham “pulled a Spurs” and Chelsea pulled a rabbit out of the hat.
And that’s the kind of magic that should see them get through unscathed again this weekend at home. But Sir Alex Ferguson will make it as difficult as possible. Except, his back-four, which has more leaks than the Wikileaks, will make it as easy as possible in this newest of the high-octane clashes.
Prediction: Chelsea 2–1 Man U.