THE INDEPENDENT:
It has taken 13 years since the old enemy were last dismissed here and sent skulking back across Manchester, but as Maine Road ushered out an era of local derbies, "Blue Moon" can hardly have been sung with more gusto. The fact that United contributed to their own downfall served to heighten the sense of pleasure, although it was perhaps fortunate for United's principal England contenders – particularly Gary Neville and Rio Ferdinand – that Sven Goran Eriksson had decided that his day was better spent at Highbury.
Life at Maine Road since that 5-1 triumph has been one of frequent misery punctuated by occasional bouts of intense optimism, followed by deflation, but in the season that the club prepare for the move to the City of Manchester Stadium, a feeling permeates here that this time they are really capable of competing on equal terms, instead of permanently being the equivalent of the younger sibling desperately trying to attract attention while big brother cavorts with with a succession of glamorous girlfriends on the couch.
Solskjaer ghosted in at the far post to equalise. It was to prove United's last moment of jubilation as they were continuously denied by that man Schmeichel.
All afternoon he was jabbing those giant gloved hands like an off-duty Spanish traffic policeman, berating his men. And you imagine he would have something to say, had he still been the visitors' custodian, when they conceded a second to City.
Exuberant City supporters departed, no doubt speculating that they may be witnessing a power shift in Manchester football. That would be exceedingly premature, as Keegan would no doubt tell them.
THE OBSERVER:
Manchester City derby victories come along once in a blue moon, and when they do they have to be memorable enough to get the fans through the lean years that usually follow.
This was City's first win over Manchester United since the 5-1 thumping they handed out in 1989, and if the margin was not quite that impressive, it should have been. Nicolas Anelka missed two glorious chances when through against Fabien Barthez with all the time in the world, and City would not have been flattered by a couple more goals.
The only thing lacking from a passionate afternoon, in fact, was any semblance of passion from the visitors. United gifted City an opening goal after just four minutes, briefly played well enough to get back on terms quickly, but showed surprisingly little stomach for a fight once they went behind again to a bizarre Shaun Goater goal.
Never has Roy Keane's absence been so keenly felt, especially by grateful City midfielders such as Eyal Berkovic and Danny Tiatto, who were not just allowed to run around on both legs, but to run the game. With David Beckham suspended, United appeared leaderless and ineffective, and although Juan Veron initially looked capable of taking a hold in midfield he faded so badly he was withdrawn in the second half.
Peter Schmeichel was required to make late saves from Giggs and Solskjaer as City did their best to set up a nervous ending, though both attempts lacked conviction. By that stage, so did Manchester United.
THE TIMES:
It has become one of football’s clichés that you write off United at your peril, and with good reason, but they were second best here in a rip-roaring scrap for local supremacy, and six wins from their first 13 League games is scarcely the stuff of which championships are made.
City, for whom this was their first derby win in 13 years, should have had five goals, but Kevin Keegan and company were not about to be greedy, and were happy to celebrate the three with which they punished some awful United defending. Shaun Goater was the executioner-in-chief, scoring two to reach 100 for the club and making the other for his more celebrated partner, Nicolas Anelka.
The glory boys up front were not the only heroes, however. Danny Tiatto and Eyal Berkovic epitomised grit and subtlety to give City the edge in midfield, and when United threatened a comeback they were shut out by the familiar four-square figure of Peter Schmeichel, who made some saves evocative of his peak years on the other side of Manchester.
Those who view such things in red and white will not agree, but for the rest of us, including those not caught up in the tribal rivalries of the fixture, it was a smashing match, vibrant and edge-of-the-seat competitive from first to last.
Sir Alex Ferguson’s views? As is his habit, he declined to attend the post-match press conference to share them. They were probably unprintable.
THE TELEGRAPH:
As if it were not bad enough to have lost by two clear goals to their neighbours and bitter rivals, United could easily have gone down by the 5-1 scoreline that City ran up here 13 years ago. Until this famous lunchtime victory, that resounding win in 1989 was the only rock of consolation to which their fans have been able to cling while United have lorded it over them ever since.
Not any more. United were comprehensively outplayed yesterday by a committed City side who first won the right to play, then made their football tell. The standard was not particularly high, but it is foolish to expect a classic in any derby game. What good football there was, though, came from City. Eyal Berkovic was an outstanding source of creativity in a midfield that won the battle in the centre hands down.
Predictably, in that he has stopped attending press conferences after Premiership matches, there was no comment to the written press by United manager Sir Alex Ferguson. And his City counterpart Kevin Keegan resisted the urge to dust off the "I'd love it if we beat them" comment he had used with such passion in that televised rant against United when he was manager of Newcastle.