Manchester City will be hosting Manchester United on Sunday. The fixture will take place at 10:00 pm IST on 6th March at the Etihad Stadium. Both clubs will play their 28th match of the Premier League this season. Manchester City had beaten Manchester United 2-0 in the previous derby at Old Trafford. City will look forward to doing a double-over United just for the second time under Pep Guardiola.
Manchester City are on top of the Premier League table with 66 points. They recently dropped points against Spurs at home and Liverpool have pounced on that opportunity. However, it is hard to predict a City defeat because of the way they are playing right now. They are unstoppable at the moment and will be a headache to handle for United.
Manchester City Premier League Form: D W W L W
Manchester United are having a shaky season with very inconsistent results and poor performances. However, they have improved under Rangnick but are failing to finish their chances which has troubled them later. This will be a big test for United and Rangnick to see how they handle the pressure against a big team. United will be going through a tough run of fixtures starting from this derby.
Manchester United Premier League Form: D D W W D
Team News
Manchester City vs Manchester United: The Citizens team news
Manchester City had to take off Ruben Dias at halftime against Peterborough. The defender faced a leg issue and the manager did not want to risk such an important player. However, Dias remains likely to play against Manchester United. Another blow Manchester City suffered in the FA Cup tie was of Nathan Ake. Nevertheless, he was anyway unlikely to start the derby.
Zack Steffen was not on the bench for Manchester City in their FA Cup tie and is also likely to miss the derby. Cole Palmer will also miss the clash against Manchester United having suffered a long-term injury. Whereas Benjamin Mendy remains out due to a police charge and having been suspended by Manchester City.
Manchester City possible starting lineup
Ederson; Kyle Walker, Ruben Dias, Aymeric Laporte, Joao Cancelo; Kevin de Bruyne, Rodri, Ilkay Gundogan; Raheem Sterling, Bernardo Silva, Riyad Mahrez
Manchester United vs Manchester City: The Red Devils team news
Manchester United have no fresh injury concerns after their recent matches. However, the only doubt that United has is of Edinson Cavani who has suffered a groin injury. Nevertheless, there are still chances that he could feature from the bench against the Citizens. Whether Rangnick will play Paul Pogba in midfield or not remains a big question because of his poor performance against Atletico Madrid.
United have Mason Greenwood on their suspension list as he is arrested due to his illegal acts. He remains suspended by Manchester United until further notice. Ralf Rangnick might be urged to start Varane and Lindelof at the back because of the duo’s great pairing against Watford.
Manchester United possible starting lineup
David de Gea; Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Victor Lindelof, Raphael Varane, Luke Shaw; Scott McTominay, Fred; Anthony Elanga, Bruno Fernandes, Jadon Sancho; Cristiano Ronaldo
Our Predictions
Manchester City 2-1 Manchester United
Manchester United have created the most number of chances since Ralf Rangnick took charge. However, this will be their first meeting against City and Rangnick will be up against a team that likes to have the ball. Rangnick pressing may hurt City to some extent but Guardiola has been training his players for years to play with that pressure. Moreover, it is unlikely for a team to sit back and counter under Ralf Rangnick.
Follow us on Twitter for regular football updates.
