Manchester is always RED

It was quite a match, wasn't it? Totally gripping. With its fair share of howlers and bloopers, actually. But nothing could take away the drama and excitement of this derby match in Manchester between Manchester United and .... who were they again?


If anything, it just goes to accentuate two facts: one, Manchester will always be RED, not green or blue, yellow or whatever, and two, Michael Owen is PRICELESS!


Although the score was a flattering 4-3 for the visitors, it was always the Red Devils that were always ahead in the game. Wayne Rooney opened accounts after only two minutes into the game, then Darren Fletcher soared high in the air to give ManU two precious goals. But it was Michael Owen who scored the most valuable goal in the dying seconds of the game.


Critics will always be questioning why the referee had allowed the game to continue beyond the four minutes of allotted added time and it's true that Owen's goal came in the fifth minute and 25th second of added time but hey, that's football. I'd be equally upset if this had happened against Manchester United too.


I saw this explanation in The Independent, though:

Owen scored on 95 minutes, 25 seconds. However, under Premier League rules, the referee is entitled to go 59 seconds over the added-on time displayed on the fourth official's board. Add that 59 seconds to the requisite one minute extra for a goal, plus 30 seconds extra for a substitution – Michael Carrick came on for Luis Anderson – and Atkinson was within his rights to play past the time Owen scored.

So there you have it!