5 May 1956 - Trautmann Puts His Neck On The Line

On 5 May 1956, Manchester City defeated Birmingham City 3-1 in the FA Cup Final before a crowd of over 100,000 at London's Wembley Stadium. It was a remarkable win, considering that the Man City goalkeeper, Bert Trautmann (pictured, center), played the last seventeen minutes with a broken neck.

Although it was Manchester City's second consecutive appearance in the Final, having lost 3-1 to Newcastle the previous year, the English press hailed Birmingham as favorites due to a strong run up to the Final that saw them concede only two goals while scoring eighteen. Man City, on the other hand, had advanced in every round by a mere one-goal margin. But they had an advantage in Trautmann, whom the Football Writers' Association had recently named Footballer of the Year.

Manchester City pressured the Birmingham goal from the opening kickoff, resulting in a third-minute strike from forward Joe Hayes that gave them a 1-0 lead. Birmingham quickly equalized, however, when a 15th-minute shot ricocheted off a Man City defender to wrong-foot Trautmann, then landed in the path of forward Noel Kinsey, who slotted it home.

The two sides were evenly matched to the hour mark, when Man City took advantage of Birmingham's defensive lapses to score two quick goals from forwards Bobby Johnstone (62') and Jack Dyson (64'). Birmingham attacked the Man City goal with renewed fervor when, in the 73rd minute, forward Peter Murphy collided with Trautmann. Murphy's knee rammed into Trautmann's neck, knocking the keeper unconscious.

The rules at the time did not alow for substitutes, so after Trautmann recovered, he insisted on staying on the pitch as Manchester City complete the 3-1 win. Three days later, Trautmann's neck still hurt, so he went to a doctor who confirmed that he had dislodged five vertebrae, one of which was broken in two. Trautmann became a folk hero at Manchester City, for whom he played until 1964, making over 500 appearances.

12 November 1881 - Manchester's Heathens and Saints

On 12 November 1881, Newton Heath FC defeated hosts West Gorton (St. Mark's) FC, 3-0, in a friendly. It was the first Manchester derby, as the Heathens later became known as Manchester United and the Saints later changed their name to Manchester City. The Ashton Reporter covered the match, calling it "a pleasant game."

With that first match, played at the invitation of West Gorton, there have been a total of 168 contests between the two teams. United currently have the advantage with 69 wins to City's 49 (there have been 50 draws). The derby's top scorers is United's Wayne Rooney with 11, while City's Joe Hayes and Francis Lee are tied for second at 10 goals each. 

A number of players have taken the pitch for both City and United, including Denis Law, Peter Schmeichel, and, most recently, Carlos Tevez.

City are currently on a four-match derby win streak, with United's last derby victory coming on 9 December 2012.

5 May 1956 - Trautmann Puts His Neck On The Line

On 5 May 1956, Manchester City defeated Birmingham City 3-1 in the FA Cup Final before a crowd of over 100,000 at London's Wembley Stadium. It was a remarkable win, considering that the Man City goalkeeper, Bert Trautmann (pictured, center), played the last seventeen minutes with a broken neck.

Although it was Manchester City's second consecutive appearance in the Final, having lost 3-1 to Newcastle the previous year, the English press hailed Birmingham as favorites due to a strong run up to the Final that saw them concede only two goals while scoring eighteen. Man City, on the other hand, had advanced in every round by a mere one-goal margin. But they had an advantage in Trautmann, whom the Football Writers' Association had recently named Footballer of the Year.

Manchester City pressured the Birmingham goal from the opening kickoff, resulting in a third-minute strike from forward Joe Hayes that gave them a 1-0 lead. Birmingham quickly equalized, however, when a 15th-minute shot ricocheted off a Man City defender to wrong-foot Trautmann, then landed in the path of forward Noel Kinsey, who slotted it home.

The two sides were evenly matched to the hour mark, when Man City took advantage of Birmingham's defensive lapses to score two quick goals from forwards Bobby Johnstone (62') and Jack Dyson (64'). Birmingham attacked the Man City goal with renewed fervor when, in the 73rd minute, forward Peter Murphy collided with Trautmann. Murphy's knee rammed into Trautmann's neck, knocking the keeper unconscious.

The rules at the time did not alow for substitutes, so after Trautmann recovered, he insisted on staying on the pitch as Manchester City complete the 3-1 win. Three days later, Trautmann's neck still hurt, so he went to a doctor who confirmed that he had dislodged five vertebrae, one of which was broken in two. Trautmann became a folk hero at Manchester City, for whom he played until 1964, making over 500 appearances.

12 November 1881 - Manchester's Heathens and Saints

On 12 November 1881, Newton Heath FC defeated hosts West Gorton (St. Mark's) FC, 3-0, in a friendly. It was the first Manchester derby, as the Heathens later became known as Manchester United and the Saints later changed their name to Manchester City. The Ashton Reporter covered the match, calling it "a pleasant game."

Since that first match, played at the invitation of West Gorton, there have been 152 competitive matches between the two teams. United currently have the advantage with 62 wins to City's 41 (there have been 49 draws). The derby's top scorers are City's Joe Hayes and Francis Lee, tied at 10 goals each. United's top derby scorer is Bobby Charlton with 9.

A number of players have taken the pitch for both City and United, including Denis Law, Peter Schmeichel, and, most recently, Carlos Tevez.

United are currently on a three-match derby win streak. City's last derby win was on 2 February 2008, which completed a City double over United that season.