Manchester City need to win the derby this evening if they’re to return to the top of the Premier League.
Pep Guardiola’s side were dumped out of the Champions League a week ago and will feel they have underperformed this season if they don’t get their hands on the league title at least.
This fixture was initially scheduled for the end of February but rescheduled due to the EFL Cup final. Three points for Manchester United this evening would put us level on points with Chelsea in fourth as time is rapidly running out in our battle for Champions League football next season.
Here’s the Manchester City team I predict we’ll be facing:
Goalkeeper: Ederson
The Brazilian has been one of the best in the Premier League this season but has been known to make a few blunders. Ederson conceded three against Tottenham Hotspur in the Champions League only a week ago. Manchester City’s defensive record in the Premier League has been much better of late though – seven clean sheets in their last nine.
Defence: Kyle Walker, John Stones, Aymeric Laporte, Benjamin Mendy
I don’t think either John Stones or Aymeric Laporte have been playing particularly well of late so hopefully we can trouble the Manchester City defence. I think Benjamin Mendy will start at left-back to bomb forward and cause problems for Ashley Young in our defence. Our captain isn’t the best defensively and coming up against the attacking full-back and a forward could cause havoc down our right-hand side.
Midfield: Fernandinho, Ilkay Gundogan, David Silva
Fernandinho is the anchor man in midfield who will be looking to keep Paul Pogba quiet. The Brazilian also gets the ball rolling in midfield and likes to venture forward. David Silva is of course one we need to keep an eye on with his defence splitting passes. An injury to Kevin De Bruyne couldn’t have come at a better time for us as the Belgian star had been back to his best in recent weeks after missing most of the season through injury. I think we’ll see Ilkay Gundogan come into the starting lineup, but teenager Phil Foden is another option after his heroics over the weekend.
Attack: Bernardo Silva, Sergio Aguero, Raheem Sterling
Bernardo Silva has quietly been one of Manchester City’s best players this term and does have six goals to his name, but coming up against Luke Shaw could be good for us. However, Raheem Sterling playing on the left wing could be disastrous for us as Ashley Young does get beat time and time again in defence. The City forward is in red hot form too. Sergio Aguero loves to score in this fixture so can be guaranteed to startup front. Pep Guardiola also has the likes of Leroy Sane, Gabriel Jesus and the weekend’s winner, Phil Foden, to call upon.
Here’s the Manchester City team on paper:
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