Move over El Clasico, stand aside Old Firm, forget Merseyside, there’s a new sheriff in town when it comes to derby matches.
It’s usually based in Manchester but Wembley Stadium was a fitting venue for the annual curtain- raiser, the FA Community Shield between the Premier League Champion, Manchester United and FA Cup holder Manchester City.
With the stadium split evenly into blue and red, the new power base in English football gave us a taste of what to expect when the Premier League campaign opens up for real next week.
It was also a relief to watch the game being played at a real pace, with real
tackles and with a real intensity after a summer of powder puff friendlies that quite frankly, bored me to tears.
There was nothing boring about the 95 minutes we witnessed on Sunday. The battles all over the pitch were full bloodied and not for the faint of heart. If you didn’t have ‘bottle’ you’d be found out in a ‘Manchester minute’.
Micah Richards and Patrice Evra set the tone. Mario Balotelli and Nemanja Vidic made sure that tone stayed at fever pitch while Edin Dzeko and Anderson nearly took it to operatic status as this rivalry became a match where no one could or would back down.
In between bruising challenges and handbags though, one player shone brighter than all others.
At the age of 24, Nani, like Cristiano Ronaldo before him looks set to truly confirm his place as Manchester United’s brightest star and the signs have been there for the past 12 months. Last season was his most consistent as he finally learnt that ‘end product’ is the barometer from which he will be marked.
I thought he was desperately unlucky not to make the Premier League team of the season while being dropped for the Champions League final proved to be a huge mistake which Sir Alex Ferguson will not make again.
He carried this form into pre-season and although he admittedly has been playing against mostly inferior opposition he has been eye catching - and he brought that to Wembley.
Both of his goals were exquisite in terms of technical difficulty and execution. The clever movement followed by dinking the ball over Joe Hart for the first goal was delicious.
The second strike, coolly rounding the England keeper, displayed the skills of a man completely in control of his body, mind and game.
Nani will be a force to be reckoned with and I believe the competition for his place by the likes of Antonio Valencia, Ji-sung Park and Ashley Young is just the motivation the Portuguese needs to develop into a truly world class player and consistent match winner.
On the subject of Young, one of two United debutants, I thought the former Aston Villa winger had a decent game. He showed his pace, ability to beat players and no shortage of confidence when moving aside Wayne Rooney to take free-kicks.
The other new boy was 20-year-old goalkeeper, David de Gea, the $30 million plus signing from Atletico Madrid. After having very little to do in the first half he was undone by poor defending on Joleon Lescott’s header. However, to be beaten by Dzeko’s long range effort just before halftime was slack keeping at best.
The scouting report on him though is that he has tremendous self-belief and that was evident in the second half when he pulled off a number of fine saves.
I’m not going to jump to an immediate verdict and compare him to say, Massimo Tiabi, but the number one role at Old Trafford is without a doubt, the most scrutinized in football. De Gea will need all that self-belief and more if he is to survive.
Overall, Ferguson will have been pleased with his team's competitiveness and delighted with their legendary ability to recover lost causes. On the other side of the coin though, Roberto Mancini will have added a few more touches of grey to that stylish head of hair.
In typical City fashion, they’ve snatched defeat from the jaws or at least a tie and their body language at the end was telling. It was as though they almost expected something bizarre to happen, that they didn’t quite believe they had it in them to beat United in back-to-back matches at Wembley.
Mancini had said before the match that his club was about five yards away from their neighbors. After that dramatic conclusion, it must feel like 500 miles. He also stated that the players on display were mentally soft compared to his era. Was he talking about players in general or his Manchester City squad?
One thing is for sure. City remains a work in progress and it will be interesting to see how they cope with the expectations and demands of playing in the Uefa Champions League.
Ultimately what we witnessed today was that this match does mean more than either manager was willing to let on. It is the marker and United have drawn first blood in what will be the most fascinating derby in all of world football this season.
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