It’s reflected in the enmity shared between the two UK cities. The construction of the Manchester Canal brewed hate between the cities, with Liverpool’s citizens believing it cost them jobs.
The rivalry between the two clubs has been waging for decades. Sir Alex Ferguson’s famous ‘We’ll knock Liverpool off their Perch’ rant and subsequently doing so still irks their fans.
Jamie Carragher and Gary Neville Square up to each other during a heated moment in Manchester United v Liverpool match in March 2010.
United fans’ hatred for the Merseyside club has risen after being constantly humiliated by them in recent years and seeing their uprise under Jurgen Klopp.
But over the last decade or so, the loathing between the players has simmered down. Nowadays, players might be enemies on the pitch but are allowed to be friends outside of it.
An ideal example is the latest bonding shared between Liverpool striker Darwin Nunez and Manchester United youngster Facundo Pellstri.
The two have had quite the polarizing journeys to the Premier League.
Nunez became one of Liverpool’s most expensive signings earlier this summer, as they paid a whopping €80m+ fee for him.
Pellistri was signed in October 2020 by the Red Devils but is yet to make his Premier League debut.
Despite their situations, the two players are quite close to each other being national teammates.
They are both a regular in the current Uruguay squad and linked up with each other ahead of their side’s matches in the International Match window.
Pellistri posted a picture of him together with his rival team’s player, with the two sharing big smiles to having arrived for international duty. He simply tweeted: “Here we are @Uruguay.”
Nunez appreciated his teammate’s love on social media and replied with just a saluting emoji – showing how much he loves to be able to play for his country once again.
Pellistri and Darwin have played six and five games respectively for Uruguay in 2022 so far, which means they have played together quite often at the international level.
It is important for a winger and forwards to have a lot of chemistry to be a success story.
With both players coming from humble upbringings, Darwin and Facundo seem to have rubbed off with each other both on and off the pitch.
Of course, their bromance has irked some fans for both their respective clubs because of their ‘players shouldn’t mingle with a rival star’ motto.
But a strong section of United and Liverpool fans have also accepted that they are national teammates and can naturally be close to each other.
While this bromance is slightly unexpected, it’s good to see the South American duo having a strong bond and love for playing for Uruguay.
