Man City vs Man Utd Preview and Betting Tip

A month or so ago there was an expectation that Man City vs Man Utd would be a huge match in determining the destination of the Premier League trophy. However, City’s impressive winning run combined with Man Utd’s stuttering form means that the league is all but over. 14 points separate the two teams now and Utd will be looking over their shoulders at the chasing pack rather than focusing on catching City.

The hosts are the 1/2 favourites for this Manchester Derby while the Red Devils are as big as 6/1. The last meeting between the two teams finished 0-0 and the draw is chalked up at 7/2 this time. Will Pep’s men continue their record-breaking winning streak? Or can Ole Gunnar Solskjaer maintain his 100% record at the Etihad since taking charge at Utd? We will find out at 4.30 pm on Sunday and you can watch the match live on Sky Sports.

City Slickers

It was hard to envisage  that Man City would be in this position in March after they drew 1-1 vs West Brom on December 15. At that stage, they had won just 4 of their previous 10 games and they were sitting in 9th, 8 points behind the then leaders Liverpool. However, the penny dropped for City’s players after that disappointing draw and since then they have taken 45 points from a possible 45. They are also in with a shout in another three cup competitions so this could be a momentous season for The Citizens.

So what has caused the upturn in form? It is pretty simple really, Stones and Dias have blossomed as a partnership at centre back and this is the rock-solid foundation upon which City’s winning run has been built. The other factor that cannot be ignored is the strength of their squad. For the 4-1 win vs Wolves in midweek Guardiola had Gundogan, Foden, Aguero, Torres, Stones, Fernandinho and Zinchenko on the bench. Those players would walk into most teams in the Premier League and Pep can rotate without any worries of a drop in quality.

City have been lavished with praise for their run, and rightly so. However, I’m not sure they are as good as some experts are making out. Wolves, for example, may have lost 4-1 but they were right in the game up until the last 10 minutes and they had a couple of great chances to score and take the lead. Aston Villa caused City plenty of problems at The Etihad too, the hosts needing a dodgy non-call from VAR to get the vital goal that broke the deadlock. The league table doesn’t lie though and City thoroughly deserve their place at the top.

Tough Task For The Red Devils

There is no dressing it up, Man Utd’s form has deteriorated badly in the last month or so. The 2-1 home defeat vs Sheffield Utd seems to have knocked their confidence badly and since then, bar a 9-0 win vs 10-man Southampton, they have failed to convince. Their only other EPL win since hammering The Saints came against Newcastle and while they won 3-1, it was far from an impressive performance.

Utd have now drawn four of their last five in the Premier League, including successive 0-0 draws the last twice. They could have played for another 3 hours against Palace on Wednesday and they still wouldn’t have scored. Bruno’s form has dipped a little, which was to be expected at some point, but the problem is that the rest of Utd’s attacking players are not contributing as much as they should.

Dan James is probably the only Utd attacker that will be happy with his performances in the last few games. Mason Greenwood desperately needs a goal and Marcus Rashford has cut a frustrated figure in the last couple of matches. Anthony Martial is another one that needs to rediscover his mojo. Edinson Cavani has been missing with injury and he should be a lot sharper now after getting 75 minutes under his belt at Selhurst Park. If Utd are to have any hope of extending their unbeaten away run in the Premier League, they need a whole lot more from their front men.

Pep’s Blueprint For Success

As ever, Pep Guardiola will expect his team to dominate in every facet of the game on Sunday. Their modus operandi is to try and score early and if they do, that sets up things perfectly for them. They then usually go on to win those types of matches easily. However, the likes of Villa and West Ham managed to get in level at half time and they were both a shade unlucky not to get something from their games vs City.

Man City vs Man Utd Premier League Head-To-Head

Manchester United have got a half-decent Premier League record vs Man City under Solskjaer. Since losing 2-0 at Old Trafford in his first Derby in charge, Utd haven’t lost in the last three in the Premier League. They produced one of their best performances of the season when winning 2-1 at The Etihad last term and they completed the double over City when winning 2-0 at Old Trafford. The 0-0 stalemate earlier this season was a damp squib, fingers crossed this match is a lot more exciting.

Early Goal On the cards

As I mentioned earlier, City usually start fast in their matches. It took them 15 minutes to score vs Wolves, 2 minutes vs Arsenal, 3 minutes vs Burnley and 9 minutes vs Sheffield Utd. On the other side of the coin, United have also conceded quite a few early goals this season. They have managed to keep it tight against ‘Big 6’ rivals but that has meant that they have lacked an attacking threat at the other end of the pitch.

I think City will be very keen to extend their winning streak and I can’t see them settling for a scoreless draw as they did at Old Trafford. Utd have drawn their last three in all competitions 0-0 and Ole Solskjaer will surely want to show a bit more ambition on Sunday. Given City’s propensity for scoring early goals (and Utd’s habit of conceding early ones) the 3/1 on offer from Bet365 about there to be a goal scored by either team in the first 10 minutes is too tempting to turn down.  

Man City vs Man Utd Tip: Time of First Goal 0-10 Minutes @ 3/1 Bet365

Key Quotes – Man City vs Man Utd

Pep Guardiola – “It comes from inside, try to win, to compete or collaborate with his mates, to do the best we can. Now is nice because we win. All the theories that we do, the nice things they’re saying is just because of one reason. Because we win. The smell when we win is so nice, so beautiful.”

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer – “We’ve had a week without scoring a week! It’s not like we had six weeks with no form. We beat Sociedad 4-0, Southampton 9-0. It’s also the opposition. But I’m not buying into the narrative that we’ve had a dip in form. Three 0-0’s isn’t really us, but we’ve just lacked a bit of spark. I don’t buy the out of form one.”

Dave Stevos