Over 20 years since their first Manchester derby win in 2002, Manchester City aim for their 57th victory in the 171st derby against Manchester United this Sunday.

Pep Guardiola’s recent success made Manchester City favorites to retain the title, but a seven-match winless streak has seen them lose ground to Liverpool and face a battle to stay in the top four.

The 2024-25 Premier League season has been challenging for Manchester City. Trailing league leaders Liverpool by eight points in their pursuit of a fifth consecutive title, City endured a four-game losing streak in the league after an unbeaten start. However, they’ve earned four points from their last two matches.

City appeared to have regained their form with a dominant 3-0 win over Nottingham Forest last week.

However, City dropped more points last Saturday, drawing 2-2 with Crystal Palace, further hindering their title defense. Defensively, they’ve struggled, conceding 21 goals in nine matches since November—more than any other club in Europe’s top five leagues during this period.

Currently eight points behind leaders Liverpool, who have a game in hand, City risk falling out of the top four with another defeat.

Despite their struggles, City fans have hope, as their Premier League head-to-head record against United shows six consecutive wins.

Meanwhile, their city rivals, United, are in a tougher situation, with a brief resurgence under new manager Ruben Amorim quickly fading. Despite entering the season with lower expectations, United’s current 13th-place position led to Erik ten Hag’s dismissal. Amorim began with an unbeaten three-match streak but has struggled to maintain that momentum.

Amorim’s early tenure as United manager started promisingly, with an unbeaten run that included a draw against Ipswich

Town and an emphatic victory over Everton.

However, Amorim’s honeymoon period in the Premier League ended with back-to-back defeats—2-0 at Arsenal and a disappointing 3-2 loss to Nottingham Forest at Old Trafford. These results have left United in 13th place with just 19 points, their lowest tally after 15 games since the 1986-87 season.

United have also struggled in this fixture, losing their last three Premier League matches against City and conceding 13 goals. However, Amorim could be the key to turning things around, having previously led Sporting to a 4-1 victory over the Cityzens in the Champions League this season.

Man City vs. Man Utd match details

• Date: Sunday, December 15, 2024
• Location: Manchester, England
• Venue: Etihad Stadium
• Kick-off time: 04:30 PM GMT
• Referee: Anthony Taylor
• Assistants: Gary Beswick, Adam Nunn
•  Fourth official: Tim Robinson
•  VAR: Stuart Attwell
• Assistant VAR: Simon Bennett
• Tickets: Fans can buy Manchester city at the club exchange or through a trusted reseller like Seatsnet.com.

Match stats and head-to-head

• There have been 171 Manchester derbies, with United leading the head-to-head 67 wins to City’s 56, and 48 matches ending in a draw.

• A total of 18 goals have been scored in the last three games between these two sides at the Etihad Stadium.

• City have kept only one clean sheet in their last ten games, with the sole clean sheet coming in the 3-0 win over Nottingham Forest.

• Erling Haaland has recorded six goals and three assists in his last four games against United, setting the record for the most goal contributions by any City player against the Red Devils in the Premier League.

• The Cityzens have conceded at least two goals in nine of their last ten matches, including four in one game against Ruben Amorim’s Sporting Lisbon side.

• Bernardo Silva has a habit of getting carded in big games, with 34% of his 67 yellow cards coming against Liverpool, Chelsea, Arsenal, Tottenham, and United. He has already been yellow-carded six times this season, including twice in his last four Premier League games.

• With an average of 8.85 corners per game, City have won more corners than any other team in the Premier League this season.

• United have opened the scoring in their last three games against City in all competitions.

• Despite their poor run of form, no team has recovered more points from losing positions than City’s 14 points this season.

• A loss to City on Sunday would be the first time United’s head coach, Amorim, has ever lost three consecutive top-flight games in his managerial career. The Portuguese coach will be hoping to secure back-to-back managerial wins over the Cityzens.

• City’s 2-2 draw against Crystal Palace in their last Premier League game was the first time they avoided defeat after going behind twice, a feat last achieved in a 2-2 draw against Liverpool in October 2021.

• Palace’s fourth-minute opener was the seventh goal City have conceded in the opening 15 minutes of a league match this season, the joint most in the competition alongside West Ham United.

• No team in the Premier League has scored more goals from outside the box this season than City, with 22 goals.

• United have failed to win any of their last five away matches in the Premier League. They’ve won only two of their last 13 away games, with their only away win this season coming in a 3-0 victory over Southampton at St. Mary’s in September.

Team news

Rico Lewis will miss Sunday’s clash due to suspension after receiving two yellow cards in the 2-2 draw against Crystal Palace.

Manuel Akanji and John Stones have not fully recovered from their respective injuries, and their participation will depend on late fitness tests.

Rodri and Oscar Bobb remain long-term absentees with ACL and leg injuries, respectively. Nathan Ake is expected to return early next year as he continues his rehabilitation from a thigh injury.

On a positive note for Pep Guardiola, Mateo Kovacic returned to the bench in their defeat to Juventus and will be in contention for a starting spot against United.

For United, there’s good news on the injury front, as Tyrell Malacia and Leny Yoro are back in the squad and vying for starting spots.

Jonny Evans is also nearing a return, and it remains to be seen if he’ll be involved this weekend.

Luke Shaw is United’s only injury concern, having suffered a setback upon his return to the squad. The England international is currently sidelined with a calf injury, and the club is taking a cautious approach to ensure his full recovery.

Predicted starting lineup

Man Utd predicted starting lineup:

Onana; Wan-Bissaka, Varane, Martinez, Malacia; Casemiro, Bruno Fernandes; Antony, Mount, Rashford; Hojlund.

Prediction

Ten losses in ten games would typically be a sackable offence, but unless you’re Pep Guardiola, having won four consecutive league titles, it’s seen as just a rough patch, and the idea of sacking him remains unconsidered.

As the saying goes, “Only those who dare fail greatly can ever achieve greatly.” Guardiola’s plan for Sunday could be to either suffer another defeat to Amorim or kickstart a winning run to secure great success this season. The final whistle will reveal all.

We’re predicting a 3-2 win for City

Last Updated on December 14, 2024 by News Time