Sir Alex Ferguson once branded Manchester City "arrogant" and accused them of having a "small club mentality" after the club's controversial recruitment of Carlos Tevez. The former Manchester United manager's outburst came after City put up a billboard near the city centre reading "Welcome to Manchester" featuring the Argentine striker, following his cross-city switch in 2009.
Ferguson's tirade
During a press conference in the summer of 2009, Ferguson said: "It's City, isn't it? They are a small club with a small mentality. All they can talk about is Manchester United; they can't get away from it." He added: "That arrogance will be rewarded. It is a go at us, that's the one thing it is. They think taking Carlos Tevez away from Manchester United is a triumph. It is poor stuff."
Continuing his criticism, Ferguson said: "Do you know what City's biggest triumph is? It's getting those players there. I don't know if they will do anything with them. It is not easy to get into that top four, so the biggest success of all is to just get the players there. They might not get beyond that. When someone offers you that kind of money, it is a big attraction to people nowadays. That is the reason they have gone there."
Changing fortunes
For most of Ferguson's tenure, City were also-rans, suffering relegation in 1998 and 2001. However, Sheikh Mansour's takeover in 2008 transformed the club into a Premier League powerhouse, and they pipped United to the title in dramatic fashion with Sergio Aguero's famous goal in 2012. Ferguson hit back in his final season, guiding United to the title in 2013.
Since then, City have won seven Premier League titles to United's none. Despite losing Pep Guardiola, City have started the new season with three wins from three ahead of Sunday's trip to Old Trafford. United, meanwhile, have had a stuttering start, with a defeat at Hull City, a win over Ipswich Town, and a draw at Everton.
