FOOTBALL

Manchester City cruise past Manchester United in what was a one-sided Derby clash

tennis player

Manchester United had a horrendous game at Old Trafford against Manchester City while they clearly struggled to either create or defend. The Red Devils had only 1 shot on target while City constantly kept attacking and creating chances.

An own goal from Eric Bailly opened the scoring for the Citizens. Bernardo Silva extended the lead when he squeezed his effort through David de Gea, after poor man-marking by Luke Shaw.

Manchester City could have scored a lot more goals but were denied by the post and the heroics of David de Gea. The 31-year-old goalkeeper has returned to his form and has saved United from many such embarrassments this season. Meanwhile, Manchester City has added to their winning streak and now they sit two points behind the table-toppers Chelsea.

Manchester United vs Manchester City-Key takeaways

Manchester City have won eight games at Old Trafford against Manchester United, more than any other team. This is certainly a record that City would be happy to hold and extend further. Although, United must be frustrated while looking at this statistic.

Manchester City has also beaten Manchester United 9 times in the past 12 meetings in all competitions. United would want to change this record as soon as possible, as it is a very poor display on their part against their arch-rival.

The Red Devils have not kept a single clean sheet at home in the last 14 games in all competitions. Even though the summer signing of Raphael Varane provides an assurance and great cover in the defence, United have struggled immensely in the defensive department.

Post match reactions from managers

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer called this defeat a big step “backwards” and said,

“It is about getting back to what we were starting to look like. We started to look like a proper team, on the front foot and a team that I liked. The Tottenham result was good but this was a big step back.”

On the other hand, Pep Guardiola was impressed with his side’s all-round performance and complimented his team’s control over the game and was quoted saying

“Except for ten minutes in the second half, the other 80 minutes we had it absolutely under control. There have been other games like when we could be champions at the Etihad in 2018 when we were 2-0 up at half time and lost 3-2, in the first half maybe it was 4 or 5 and we lost 3-2, the second half we were not good. Some games we were good but not for as much longer like Saturday was, it’s the game where we controlled (things) more specifically.”

What’s next for Manchester United and Manchester City

Manchester United faces Watford next who are in a similar form to theirs. The Red Devils would want to capitalize on this and this fixture plays an important role for the club but more importantly for Solskjaer. The international break has given United a moment to breathe and this can be a perfect opportunity for them to get running.

Meanwhile, Manchester City will be playing Everton at home and they would like to extend their winning streak and bag 3 important points against the Toffees. Rafael Benitez would do everything in his power to stop City but will miss a few key players due to injuries which makes City the clear favourites of this fixture.

Follow us on Twitter for regular football updates.

To Top