Man City’s under-fire skipper Walker will be keen on a derby win to ease the pressure around the Etihad. — Reuters
THE Manchester derby, featuring two rich but struggling sides, is the main drawcard this weekend and could yet put on a show that belies their recent woefulness.
There is nothing to suggest that they won’t go toe-to-toe in an old-fashioned heavyweight slugging match, even if Pep Guardiola’s Citizens lead the head-to-head count 11-7 between the two over the last 10 seasons.
These are two bitter rivals from the same hood, both enormously wealthy, equally proud of what they have achieved and each with the conviction that they will slaughter the other.
On another day, many would have had Man City as the overwhelming favourites to dispatch Man United at the Etihad, but with Guardiola’s side in disarray, many of the fans and pundits alike believe Ruben Amorim has every chance of beginning his Manchester derby days with a victory.
But only some people subscribe to that school of thought, and City could indeed put the Red Devils to the sword and extend their dominance of the last decade over the old enemy.
Guardiola has endured the greatest pain of his managerial career since they fell to Tottenham Hotspur in the Carabao League Cup at the end of October.
His all-conquering sluggers have somehow lost seven matches in 10 since and only won once – a rather comfortable 3-0 win over feisty Nottingham Forest.
Since he arrived at the Etihad, Guardiola has won six league titles, two FA Cups, four League Cups, three Community Shields, a Champions League, a UEFA Super Cup and a FIFA Club World Cup.
That’s an astounding amount of success, yet today there is a near consensus that they will lose tomorrow because his squad has lost their cohesion, fighting spirit and trademark fluency in attack.
Several key players have come in for criticism, but none more than their captain and England defender Kyle Walker and Brazilian goalkeeper Ederson.
More than a handful of pundits have touted a triumph for Man United on the basis that they have better results in their last six outings than the opposition, and that’s despite the Red Devils not being too sharp themselves.
In their last half-a-dozen fixtures across all competitions before they beat FC Viktoria Plzen in the Czech Republic in midweek, Man United had won three and lost two, the defeats coming in the last two of those matches.
Of course, City’s form has been a lot more dire, having won only once while losing three of their last six matches across all competitions.
So, what is it that makes some folk so optimistic that Guardiola will somehow get it right in the derby tomorrow?
Well, it should be remembered that in these derbies, the formbook is often tossed out of the window, and rather far out at that.
And one does get the feeling that this is what will transpire at the Etihad tomorrow – that City, whom Alex Ferguson once fancifully called the “noisy neighbour”, will find some form against United.
If Kevin De Bruyne and Erling Haaland can put together a showing as they have so often done since the tall Norwegian arrived in Manchester, United could be in for a thumping – and that’s what a good number of Citizens’ fans have forecast for tomorrow.
Needless to say, Portuguese coach Amorim will be priming his squad to circumvent just that and get them to register their first win in three league games.
Joshua Zirkzee, skipper Bruno Fernandes, Alejandro Garnacho and Amad Diallo will probably be the main quartet that Amorim calls on to deliver the right result at the Etihad.
All the same, it could turn out to be quite a spectacle as two teams – both out of sorts – rough each other up in a derby to remember.
