For logistical reasons at work, I tend not to cover the Reds' shortest away trip and so this was my first game there in attendance since 2012, and only my third overall after also seeing England beat Iceland in a friendly with Wayne Rooney taking centre stage.
And it was a chastening experience but one that did make me recall my other time at the Blues' home, watching a United side play.
Almost a full decade ago, I covered the Manchester Senior Cup final and the circumstances, to put it frankly, were far from ideal. A few days earlier, City had won the title with Sergio Aguero's injury-time winner against Queens Park Rangers, while I was sat at the Stadium of Light in Sunderland, pretty oblivious to all that was going on in Manchester until the dying seconds of our 1-0 win in the north east.