"I'm sorry that the commentary tension isn’t good, but the match was just so boring."

Manchester City drew 0-0 against Manchester United in the 'Manchester Derby' of the 31st round of the 2024-2025 Premier League (PL) held at Old Trafford in Manchester, England, on the 7th (Korean time). Although there were expectations for Kevin De Bruyne's final derby, there was little excitement in various ways.

Ahead of this match, De Bruyne announced his retirement. Manchester City announced on their official website on the 4th that "De Bruyne is closing the chapter on a brilliant career spent at Manchester City over the last decade," adding, "The club and fans will have time to say farewell and pay homage to De Bruyne, one of the greatest players in EPL history."

De Bruyne left a message on social media before saying goodbye to Manchester City this summer. He stated, "Only a few months remain as part of Manchester City. Football has led me to you and Manchester. This city, the club, and the fans have given me everything, and I could only repay that."

He continued, "We have won in every competition. But good or bad, it’s time to say goodbye now. All stories come to an end, but this journey has truly been the best. Let’s enjoy the last moments together."

Since leaving Germany's VfL Wolfsburg in 2015 to don the Manchester City jersey, De Bruyne has since enjoyed a prime career as a world-class midfielder. He has played 413 official matches for Manchester City, scoring 106 goals. During his time at Manchester City, he has experienced a total of 19 championships, including six Premier League titles, two FA Cups, and five League Cups.

Among these are victories in the UEFA Champions League and the FIFA Club World Cup. However, due to frequent recent injuries, De Bruyne's playing time has decreased. Suffering a hamstring injury, he missed the first half of last season, playing only 26 matches, including 18 in the EPL. This season, he has also participated in only 31 official matches, including 20 in the league.

The match was naturally expected to be De Bruyne's final derby. However, both teams engaged in a frustrating back-and-forth throughout the 90 minutes, creating only one big chance each. Ultimately, the final Manchester derby of the season ended without meeting expectations. The UK's BBC evaluated, "Manchester City missed the opportunity to reclaim 4th place after a boring goalless draw. It was a scoreless tie highlighting the need for changes for both teams this summer."

As a result, Manchester City remains in 5th place with 52 points (15 wins, 7 draws, 9 losses). With 6th place Newcastle United, who have played two matches less and have 50 points, just 2 points behind, there is a significant chance of falling further down the table. The fight for the next season's UEFA Champions League (UCL) qualification has now reached a critical point.

After the match, commentator Gary Neville noted, "It was the worst match. It seems that all the players on both teams do not think they should regret the 0-0 draw but rather think they played well without mistakes," and sighed, saying, "It was such a disappointing game. Honestly, I’m sorry it was not enjoyable even while I was commentating."

Neville criticized, "As a professional commentator, I shouldn’t feel this way, but I think I let the quality of my commentary drop because I was too bored. I know both teams are in a difficult situation. However, the players' efforts to avoid mistakes like machines were simply the worst."

He further remarked, "Coach Guardiola has already achieved great success with system football for over a decade. However, there are now so many subpar versions of Pep's football in the current football world. It truly depressed me to see the derby like this. It was, quite frankly, the worst match."

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