Eriksson proud of Manchester City fans

By Paul Walker
Special to PA SportsTicker

Manchester City manager Sven-Goran Eriksson revealed his pride at the performance of both his team and the club’s fans after Sunday’s shocking victory at Old Trafford.

City, which had not won at the ground since 1974, completed its first triumph over Manchester United since 1970 with a deserved 2-1 victory Sunday.

Darius Vassell and newcomer Benjani Mwaruwari scored first-half goals for City, and United’s only reply was in injury time from Michael Carrick.

Eriksson was just as pleased with the behavior of the City fans as he was with his team’s outstanding display, which ensured United suffered its first home loss of the season.

“I am extremely proud of our team. If you go to Old Trafford and win you deserve it,” Eriksson said. “But everyone who belongs to City - players, officials - must be proud of what our fans did here. Their behavior was fantastic, and I am extremely honored to be the club’s manager.”

There had been fears in the weeks leading up to this emotional match, which marked the 50th anniversary of the Munich air disaster, that City’s fans would disrupt the silence in memory of the 23 players, journalists and officials who died on February 6, 1958.

But the City fans respectfully observed the period of silence and emerged from the match with their reputation intact.

“I have never been involved in a ceremony like that before,” Eriksson said. “It was a very nice experience to be able to pay our respects. The two teams together, and all the fans, absolutely silent for one minute - it was beautiful.

“There has been a little concern for everyone at the club, maybe even the fans, that something may go wrong. But they were not just good, they were perfect.”

United boss Sir Alex Ferguson did not conduct any media interviews after the game. He headed straight to the airport after the final whistle to catch a plane to South Africa, where he will be promoting the club’s preseason tour.

Coach Carlos Queiroz was left to try to explain United’s poor showing.

“It was just not our day,” Queiroz said. “We tried to win as always, but collectively and individually we were not good. We did not play in the right way and we had no tempo and no inspiration.”