One of English football’s most iconic fixtures is set for another rendition on Sunday as Manchester City welcome Manchester United to the Etihad Stadium.
Both teams have underwhelmed early in the season, and a victory here could be the catalyst needed to spark a turnaround.
Manchester City preview
After kicking off their league journey with a convincing 4-0 thrashing of Wolverhampton Wanderers, Man City could not have asked for a better start to proceedings.
However, any notion that Pep Guardiola’s side has returned to their usual standards has since been quelled by subsequent performances against Tottenham Hotspur and Brighton & Hove Albion.
City suffered another defeat against Tottenham before throwing away a lead at Brighton for the second season running to lose 2-1.
With just three points on the board, City are already six adrift of Liverpool and will be eager to avoid losing further ground on the reigning champions.
Man City’s only victory against this weekend’s opponents in the last four meetings came via a penalty shoot-out in the 2024 Community Shield.
Manchester United preview
Despite the flurry of transfer activity at Old Trafford this summer, United have flattered to deceive and were made to work hard for their first win against Burnley.
A Bruno Fernandes penalty in second-half stoppage time secured a last-gasp victory, without which Ruben Amorim may have been the first managerial casualty of the season.
This came after defeats to Arsenal and Grimsby Town in league and cup, either side of a 1-1 stalemate against Fulham.
A win over City on Sunday would give United consecutive Premier League victories for the first time since Amorim’s appointment.
Keeping things tight at the back would be a good platform to build on for the visitors, who have conceded in each of their most recent eight outings.
Team news
Phil Foden, Savinho, Rico Lewis, John Stones, Josko Gvardiol and Abdukodir Khusanov are all in training for Man City, but there are question marks over their level of fitness.
Rayan Ait Nouri, Rayan Cherki, Mateo Kovacic and Omar Marmoush are guaranteed absentees.
Gianluigi Donnarumma is poised to make his first start for City since joining from Paris Saint-Germain, although James Trafford may fend off competition from him for now.
Matheus Cunha and Mason Mount were both forced off with injuries last time out. Cunha will miss the game, but Mount may be available.
Long-term absentee Lisandro Martinez is closing in on a comeback, but this weekend’s game is expected to come too soon.
Senne Lammens will have to wait for his United bow, with Altay Bayindir set to get the nod in goal.
Manchester City Predicted XI (4-3-3): Trafford; Gvardiol, Dias, Stones, Nunes; Reijnders, Rodri, Silva; Doku, Haaland, Bobb.
Manchester United Predicted XI (3-4-3): Bayindir; Shaw, De Ligt, Yoro; Dorgu, Mainoo, Casemiro, Amad; Fernandes, Sesko, Mbeumo.
