EPL

Manchester rivals suffer three o'clock woe

By Sports Desk September 30, 2023

Manchester City and Manchester United both lost on Saturday, breaking a decade-old wait for the two rivals to fall to a defeat in a 3pm kick-off.

It is rare for both United and City to play in the traditional Saturday slot, but that was the case as Erik ten Hag's side hosted Crystal Palace and Pep Guardiola's Premier League champions headed to Wolves.

Yet neither team will be in a rush to remember this particular afternoon in a hurry, as they both lost in a 3pm Saturday kick-off for the first time since September 28, 2013. 

United lost 1-0, with Joachim Andersen's goal making Roy Hodgson the first manager to go unbeaten in five successive Premier League trips to Old Trafford. City, meanwhile, went down 2-1 at Molineux, with Hwang Hee-chan getting the winner for Wolves.

No Rodri, big problems

City lost to Newcastle United in the EFL Cup on Wednesday and, without star midfielder Rodri – who was serving the second of a three-match suspension for the red card he received against Nottingham Forest – they found themselves on the end of a defeat again at Wolves.

Since Rodri made his Premier League debut in August 2019, City have lost five of 15 matches without the Spaniard in the competition (W9 D1); by contrast, they have lost just five of their last 67 league games when Rodri has featured (W53 D9).

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    "Arsenal, also they deserved [to win the league], they did an unbelievable season, but I think the difference was in here.

    "When they came here, they faced us at the Etihad, I saw them and said, 'Ah, these guys, they don't want to beat us, they just want a draw.'

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    "At the end, if you give us one point, we will win the last seven, eight games even though it's so tough. So I think it comes down to mentality."

    Rodri did not taste defeat in the Premier League throughout 2023-24, with all three of City's losses coming when the Spaniard was suspended.

    He has now gone unbeaten through his last 50 Premier League matches, with only former Arsenal defender Sol Campbell enjoying a longer such streak (56 games between 2002 and 2004).

    City's historic triumph means they have surpassed the achievements of Huddersfield Town (1923-1926), Arsenal (1932-35), Liverpool (1981-1984) and Manchester United (1998-2001 and 2006-2009), all of whom won three straight top-flight titles.

    They could also become the first team to ever win back-to-back league and FA Cup doubles on Saturday, when they face Manchester United in the final of the latter competition at Wembley Stadium. 

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