Man Utd v Man City – Preview, Predictions, and Best Bets

Man Utd host Man City at Old Trafford in the early kickoff on Saturday. The hosts come into the match having won eight successive matches in all competitions. City have lost twice in their last seven fixtures (all competitions) and trail Arsenal by five points in the league table. Erik Ten Hag’s side will want revenge for a 6-3 humiliation in the first derby of this season.

Man Utd Form

United are in great form. Since their Manchester derby thrashing, they’ve lost just once in the league, a shock away defeat to Aston Villa. They’ve responded with eight successive wins in three different competitions. In the league, it’s not just two losses in 15 and one in ten.

Since losing 3-1 at Aston Villa, they’ve scored in the last minute to win 2-1 at Fulham and cruised 3-0 past Nottingham Forest. A late Marcus Rashford goal then sealed a 1-0 victory at Wolves before beating Bournemouth 3-0 at home. Their last two matches have been in cup competitions, 3-1 at home to Everton in the FA Cup and a 3-0 home victory against Charlton in the Carabao Cup quarter-final in midweek.

Man Utd Team News

United look set to again be without Jadon Sancho, whilst Donny van de Beek is injured. Diego Dalot went off injured in the midweek match against Charlton so Aaron Wan-Bissaka could get another start at right back. Despite some rotation in recent weeks, the side is pretty predictable with World Cup finalists Lisandro Martinez and Raphael Varane forming the centre-back pairing.

Marcus Rashford will play down one wing with Anthony Martial as the centre forward. Antony and Alejandro Garnacho are fighting to play on the other flank unless Fred starts with Bruno Fernandes wide.

Man Utd Motivation

100% focus and motivation will be on this match and trying to get the win. Erik Ten Hag’s side will look to be more solid than in the first derby and allow less space behind for Erling Haaland to exploit.

A draw is not a disaster and may be seen as a pretty decent result in isolation.

Man City Form

City’s form has been a bit out of character recently. They ended the first half of the season by losing 2-1 at home to Brentford in the 97^th minute. After the resumption, they beat Liverpool 3-2 in the Carabao Cup and won 3-1 at Leeds. A shock 1-1 home draw with struggling Everton followed as they threw away a lead.

Guardiola’s side then won 1-0 at Stamford Bridge against Chelsea but their first half display was one of their worst of the season. A 4-0 thrashing of Chelsea followed in the FA Cup as their inconsistency was on display. In midweek, Man City lost 2-0 at Southampton to be knocked out of the Carabao Cup, a massive shock result.

Man City Team News

City have rotated heavily in the last two cup matches. Erling Haaland will return to start and so will Ederson in goal. Nathan Ake and Manuel Akanji look certain starters at the back, alongside John Stones if he recovers from an unspecified ailment.  Ruben Dias remains absent.

Rico Lewis looks set to play an inverted fullback role for this one and Rodri, Riyad Mahrez, and Phil Foden should also return to start after midweek rests. Joao Cancelo may need to settle for a place on the bench in this one with unconventional fullback duties being utilised.

Man City Motivation

After some recent dropped points in the league and a cup exit, Guardiola will be desperate for a reaction and a three-point haul. The coach is expected to use inverted fullbacks to make his side solid defensively.

A draw would usually not be a poor result but with a five point gap to Arsenal, City really need to win this one and avoid that gap getting any bigger.

Key Stats

Man Utd have won their last 8 matches (all comps)

United have lost just 1/17 PL home matches (4 wins in a row)

Man Utd have kept 5 successive clean sheets at Old Trafford (PL)

Man City have lost just 1 of their last 26 away PL matches

Man City have won the last 3 derbies vs Man Utd (12-4 aggregate)

Prediction

Man Utd comes into this match in fine form and with a strong recent home league record. City have been inconsistent of late but they are still the more likely side to take the victory in this one, especially with Erling Haaland fresh and raring to go.

Best Bet: Man City win at 1.86

Value Bet: Man City win and Over 2.5 goals at 2.75

Multiplier Leg: Man City win/draw double chance + over 2.5 goals at 2.20

James O'Connor

James is a football analyst who writes about the tactics of the PSL and English Premier League. He holds the UEFA A coaching licence and has previously worked for several clubs in analysis roles.Twitter: https://twitter.com/footy_analysis