EPL: Manchester Is the Current Capital of English Football

A remarkable day of football, first in London and then in Manchester, went a long way to proving that the current capital of English football can be located in the North West of the country.

With Manchester City sweeping aside top four hopefuls Tottenham at White Hart Lane, and then Manchester United demolishing Arsenal a few hours later, came compelling evidence that this season's silverware will be contested—and quite possibly shared—between the two local rivals.

City went back to the top of the table with a 5-1 romp, before United quickly usurped them thanks to their 8-2 goal-fest at Old Trafford. In total, thirteen goals were scored by the Manchester clubs, with a four-goal haul and a hat-trick registered by individual performers. Some breath-taking football was played, and we were allowed to feast on the sight of two of the strongest squads ever assembled.

Both results were remarkably emphatic and, given the identity of the opposition, it is rapidly becoming clear that only Chelsea now have what it takes to rival the Mancunian behemoths.

In North London, Edin Dzeko was the main man, as the Bosnian's four goal salvo continued to give Roberto Mancini a selection headache—considering the wealth of options up front available to Italian.

But while Dzeko's four goals were brilliantly-taken, it was what emanated from the area of the pitch just behind him that most caught the imagination—and which sent out a stark message to other Premier League pretenders.

David Silva, Samir Nasri and Sergio Aguero oozed danger and, so fluid did they play as a unit, it was difficult to believe this was the first time the trio had played together. Nasri in particular, with his two first-half assists, stood out, as he sought to justify his enormous price tag and even more exorbitant wages. Few City fans will begrudge him either after this display.

Inspired by the Frenchman, some of the football City played was scintillating. But Mancini's side have something else that elevates their game even beyond technical wizardry—a physical presence on the pitch.

From Vincent Kompany at the back, through to Yaya Toure in the middle and Dzeko up front, City have a fearsome spine to their team that many others, like Spurs on Sunday, will be unable to cope with this season.

Add in generous dashes of flair and skill from the likes of Nasri and Silva, and it's easy to see why City simply have to be considered as title contenders this season.

Up at Old Trafford, a few hours later, it was United's turn to dazzle, slightly upstaging their 'noisy neighbours' to the tune of three goals—and snatching top spot in the process.

Arsene Wenger was forced to send out a weakened and inexperienced side, but that should not take anything away from United who themselves, somewhat ironically, stuck with the young side that has so far served them so well.

Such is Alex Ferguson's faith in his young defensive unit, he opted to keep Rio Ferdinand on the bench. The England defender took his place on the bench alongside Park Ji-sung, Javier Hernandez, Dimitar Berbatov, Ryan Giggs and Fabio Da Silva. Frankly, that kind of strength in depth is scary.

Wenger got his tactics all wrong—his defence played far too high up the pitch, allowing United to get in behind them time after time—but the way in which United took advantage was awe-inspiring.

Every time they had the ball in midfield, they looked likely to carve open a chance. More often than not, they did. Had several other chances not been squandered, the scoreline would have had an even more emphatic look to it.

All in all, it was a great day for Manchester, and a distinctly ominous one for the rest of the country. While both City and United made their respective points to the red and white halves of North London, a clear message was also sent out to the west of the capital, where Chelsea now know they will have two forces from Manchester to contend with this season.

The significance of these two performances is unlikely to have been limited to England either. With the Champions League about to kick off in earnest, there will be a glut of other clubs across Europe who should be quaking in their boots at the thought of having to face either side in this kind of form.

Certainly, if the pair can maintain the high standards they set for themselves over the weekend, the eye of the football world will be united in focusing on one city this season: Manchester.