What a game to return to after the annoyance of the international break. Like goodness gracious is it boring AF! At least we did see quite a few goals though, so that's something.
However, quite a few of those goals came from City's robot Herling Haaland who appears to have hit overdrive at just the right (or wrong) time, depending on how you look at it.
There is one BIG positive for United though, which we'll get to in a second.
Ruben Amorim will come up against a manager whom he hasn't lost to after three encounters last season. Amorim's Sporting defeated Guardiola's City 4-1 in the Champions League before Ruben's Reds came back to get a late victory at the Emptyhad in this fixture last year. This was followed by a drab 0-0 at Old Trafford.
Decent record of two wins and one draw in three matches 👏. Let's hope we can make that three wins on Sunday.
Predicted Lineup
That BIG positive I was talking about earlier is the fact that Haaland after scoring those 5 goals for Norway won't be coming up against United's supposed no 1 Andre Onana 🙌.
Praise the Lord! Thank God! Never thought I'd see the day 😭.
As we know, the Cameroonian is on his way to Trabzonspor which at the time of writing this, that transfer hasn't been confirmed but with the 'Here we go' already given, we know it's pretty much done.
This does however, pose a bit of a question as to who should be in goal.
Bayindir is a backup who isn't good enough to be a backup while Lammens is young and hasn't played for United yet. To throw in an inexperienced goalkeeper in a derby is quite risky but nor does Bayindir fill us with much confidence.
As you can see, I do believe Amorim will go with the more tried and tested Turk who while he may not be the level we require, has shown signs of improvement other than being able to come for crosses. He is also more experienced and could give him the edge over the young buck.
Ahead of him should see no changes as Yoro, De Ligt and Shaw will remain as the back three. As for wing-backs, it is a difficult thing to see what the manager will do.
Dorgu didn't start in the win over Burnley as it was Dalot on the left and Amad on the right. However, Dalot pulled out of Portugal's recent internationals due to a slight injury. Not sure whether he'll be back but a man who is is Mazraoui. The Moroccan returned in United's win over Burnley and we know what a top player he is. Reports from Andy Mitten says he is the "best signing United have made in years."
I don't disagree with that.
So glad he's back 🙌.
Midfield will have Casemiro and Bruno again. I'm not sure whether Cunha and Mount will be ready, at least to start, after they picked up injuries in the win over Burnley. If they are, I can see the manager using them again as he has done so far this season.
As you can see though, they aren't in my predicted lineup as I'm guessing they won't be fit so I've gone with Mbeumo and Amad as the two no 10s. I don't actually mind this and here we can see the benefit of having a whole host of attacking midfielders. There is also the option of moving Bruno further forward with Mainoo or Ugarte coming into midfield and one of Mbeumo or Amad dropping to the bench.
Sesko to make his first start in the league. The international break saw him start and complete both matches for Slovenia meaning that that's extra minutes in the tank. Amorim spoke about how he had cramps after the loss to Grimsby which is why he didn't start in our last match.
Approach
While I mentioned we are likelier to sit deep and hit on the break (especially if we do happen to play with five at the back), this is exactly what we thought will happen in the game against Arsenal.
Amorim opted for a similar defense which suggested to all that we will be more on the back foot. However, as that match was unfolding, we saw that it was actually United who were the dominant side and played some really top stuff. The manager even substituted Dalot at RWB for a more attacking player in Amad not long after half time indicating his thoughts that perhaps we can go on the offensive a little more.
Arsenal are also better than City are at the moment which could cause United to believe they can play more on the front foot. As we are away from home though, that could play a part in the manager's thinking as well.
On the other hand, considering how well we played against the Gunners and City struggling this season (they've lost two of their three games including one at home), maybe Amorim will believe they are there for the taking?
With some new players (Gianluigi Donnarumma will be making his debut) as well as some old heads leaving (Manuel Akanji, Ilkay Gundogan, Ederson), City may take time to truly gel which could give United an advantage.
We also have some new players (including a new GK too) but what we've seen so far from our team is that ability to play together so early on into the season. This is the positive of signing Premier League-proven, experienced players who happened to be two of our best players thus far. Mbeumo won United's player of the month for August showing just how well he's done.
In this game last year, it was pretty even throughout. City did take the lead (through a corner of course which will be an area they target), but United managed to stay in the game and not let the home side run away with it, which is something that we've been notorious for allowing to happen in years gone by.
Both our goals came from United acting quickly with Amad playing a massive role in both. He was the one who got onto a loose backpass in no time resulting in a foul and penalty which Bruno scored from. That was in the 88th minute.
The Ivorian then made a great run after a pass from Martinez found him before he got there ahead of Ederson and just about managed to squeeze the ball into the net to give us the lead and victory.
Two really quick actions from United got Amorim a great win. So far in the first three games, we've seen glimpses of this from our play but not to that extent. However, and this is why I feel Amad has to start, when it comes to these quick actions or putting the opposition under pressure in dangerous areas, Amad is your guy as he did it so well last season.
If we do happen to play on the counter, Mbeumo can come into play here as well. This is the type of football that allowed him to flourish while at Brentford. Counter-attacking football saw the best of the Cameroonian and why many believe that this is a reason as to why he is an excellent signing.
Of course, we then have to worry about crosses. Any form of ball into the box (particularly in the air) is a major concern. United and their goalkeeper seem immune to coming for crosses. Bayindir has somehow found something to be even worse at than Onana, or is at least on the same level.
Every ball into the 18-yard area I shit myself.
Against Arsenal, they had one chance, they took it and won the game. It was a corner where Bayindir was too weak and it ended up costing us points. At Fulham, while they didn't score from a corner (although they probably should've done on multiple occasions as the Turk failed to get anywhere near the ball) they did score from a cross after Dalot tried a stupid Cruyff turn in our final third before Bruno didn't track the run of scorer Emile Smith-Rowe.
Burnley's goals came from balls into the box too. Their first was from a simple cross as an unmarked Lyle Foster scored a tap-in. Their second came from a long throw-in after they won the first header, the second ball and the third ball before it was put into the net.
City have quite a few big players of their own and quality with deliveriy. This could be a problem area
.
Luckily for United, we have become a threat from our own set-plays as well. The goal at Fulham and the first against Burnley came from a corner and free-kick. It's an area that we've improved upon.
City have been playing a high line as well which is another area to take advantage of. With our high press and a new GK to test out, United will surely be pushing the Cityzens hard in their final third.
Spurs did a counter-attacking job and won, pretty comfortably in the end. This is a blueprint for what we can do to win.
Form
As we know, we have 4 points from three games. Not the worst return, but not the best either. It's more frustrating knowing that you should've gotten more due to your performance but I suppose that that in itself is a positive: we played well.
This does mean that we are actually higher in the table (9th) than our noisy neighbors who are languishing in 13th thanks to two losses and one win.
Haven't heard anything about Pep needing to change his system or even 'Pep out.' Seems to only work for our club 🤷♂️.
When it comes to the stats, it was suggest even further how much United have improved this season.
We are:
1st in shots
1st in touches in opponents box
1st in accurate crosses
2nd in shots on target
2nd in expected goals
2nd in accurate long balls
5th in possession percentage
We're actually cooking a little. All we need do is learn to defend properly and put the ball in the back of the net. Do this and we should be much higher in the table.
Unfortunately, the reality is that we have scored just 2 goals with the other 2 being own goals. The goals we've conceded have also been really poor which means oppositions always have a chance regardless of what we do.
When it comes to these big games, we know United have the tendency to show up. We beat City in this fixture last season but was the only victory we had over any of the big 6. That was also our only win over any of City, Spurs, Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea away from home in three seasons.
We also finished bottom of the big 6 table last season.
This is a stat that we definitely have to improve and with a struggling City to face, this could give us the perfect chance to do so.
United have only won two of the last eight league derbies. There was one draw and five City victories, two of which were hidings (4-1 and 6-3).
Man City
It hasn't gone quite according to plan for Pep Fraudiola and his Cityzens. After a pretty disastrous season by their standards last year in which their only real flex was to finish third (they went trophy-less), it was a campaign to forget.
The Emptyhad has seen some long-serving players leave with some new ones joining. Guardiola would've been hoping that the likes of Tijjani Reijnders, Rayan Ait-Nouri and Rayan Cherki would change their fortunes.
That did appear to be the case after the 6x champions of the last eight seasons began 25/26 with a resounding 4-0 win over Wolves in which two of those new boys Reijnders and Cherki scored. This caused a lot (including myself if I'm being honest) to think that City were back as surely they couldn't have another crap season?
However, since that convincing win, they haven't been quite so convincing.
That victory was followed by a familiar outcome at home to Spurs who even under a new manager in Thomas Frank, managed to deal City their customary defeat. They ended up comfortably winning 2-0 at the Emptyhad.
Then came the loss to Brighton in their last game. City took the lead through Haaland who is the division's top scorer with 3 goals, but saw the game turn on it's head when James Milner scored a 67th minute penalty before Brajan Gruda netted an 89th minute winner.
More worryingly for City in this loss was the stats. It's no surprise to see them dominate the possession with 64% but they had equal amount of shots at goal with 12, but fewer on target (7-3). Brighton also created more big chances (2-1) and had a higher xG of 2.3 compared to 1.8.
Very unlike Guardiola's men at all.
On top of it all, the manner with which City conceded their goals is enough to rival United. Poor defending and a ridiculously high line have caught City out in both these defeats.
According to Stat Muse, Haaland despite being the top scorer has missed the joint-most big chances with 4. Being wasteful up front seems to be an issue of theirs as much as ours.
After his 5 goals during the week though, Pep will be hoping that his striking viking will take that form into the derby.
5 goals 😳. Fuck me!
No doubt with a reshufling of the squad, things were always going to take time but with the quality they possess, no one would've expected such a poor start to the season.
City will also be without Mateo Kovacic and the man who said he wants to "kill" United in Cherki. Omar Marmoush will also be out after suffering a knee injury for Egypt.
They do have a returning Rodri which will give them a boost but after an ACL injury, one can see that the Ballon d'Or winner isn't at his best.
However, a game as big as this might be exactly what City need in order to get their season up and running. Sometimes, the big matches are the ones that kick you into gear. Let's hope that this isn't the case on Sunday 🤞.
Prediction
Derby games are always difficult to call. It's a great leveller. United do come alive in these matches but we do struggle away from home. City could use it as a stepping stone for their campaign and come out as a wounded animal might when faced with adversity. Or, we could take advantage of them being shite.
And I do believe that this will be the case. Even with our unpredictability and inconsistency, I feel like there's something brewing under Amorim. There seems to be a different air about the team. The stats and performances would indicate this as well.
This is why I'm feeling quietly confident that we will go there and get another 2-1 win.
You reckon we can obtain victory at the Emptyhad two seasons running? Or am I getting too ahead of myself?
Erling Haaland | Image via Manchester City official X (@ManCity)
Bryan Mbeumo | Image via Manchester United official X (@ManUtd)
Etihad Stadium | Photo by Jonny Gios on Unsplash