Sunday's Capital One Cup final — Manchester City vs. Liverpool — won the day because, not only was it a great game soccer-wise, it gave us a phenomenal array of subplots. Let's run them down real quick:
Manchester City vs. Liverpool Subplots
The Yolo Derby
Yaya Toure had a great game for City, slamming home the winning penalty. Kolo Toure had a great game for Liverpool, leading the defense and running like a man 10 years younger. One of the best moments of the match for Liverpool fans was when Yaya found himself one-on-one with Kolo, and Kolo reminded Yaya who the older brother is. And the chants. So many chants.
Brothers @KoloKolotoure28 and @YayaToure sharing an embrace after the game. #CapitalOneCupFinal https://t.co/9WdJJMZ9u8
— ElevenSportsNetwork (@ElevenSportsSG) February 28, 2016
Raheem's Revenge
Raheem Sterling probably doesn't have fond memories of his first game against his former club. This occasion was slightly happier, although Liverpool supporters will take comfort in Raheem not taking a penalty and missing more than one sitter.
Boring james Milner
Sterling wasn't the only player facing a former club. Both James Milner and Daniel Sturridge are former Citizens, Milner having arrived this summer. He didn't do anything to embarass himself really against his former employer, but just to be on the safe side he should never be allowed to take a corner kick again.
Lucas Plays In Wembley
Lucas Leiva is Liverpool's longest-tenured player, but he hadn't played in Wembley until Sunday. He rewarded Jurgen Klopp's faith in him by turning in one of the best performances (out of position, no less) of his career, despite missing a penalty at the end.
Caballero The Hero
If you can't tell from the comments above, this post was authored by a Liverpool fan, but even an ardent Red supporter can't help but be genuinely happy for Manchester City's penalty hero. What a story.
Up vs. Down
Manchester City have taken Liverpool's place in the traditional Permier League big four (although this season what does that even mean) via an influx of UAE oil money. The match sort of mirrored real life, with Manchester City on the front foot, with Liverpool gamely hanging on for dear life.
The German Conection
Next season, this will be the fancy former Bundeliga manager derby, with City acquiring Pep Guardiola from Bayern Munich and Liverpool already having Jurgen Klopp, formerly of Borussia Dortmund. This will be a fun one, because we would describe Guardiola's managerial style as "we are going to beat you because of course we are going to beat you" and Klopp's as "the best plucky underdog of all time."
Soccer
Oh, right, there was also some soccer. It was a well-playerd, competitive, hotly-contested (Adam Lallana should learn to pick fights with people who aren't almost comically larger than him) match, and that's all we really wanted.
Contact The18 Staff Writer Sam Klomhaus at Klomhaus@The18.com or follow him on Twitter @SamKlomhaus
