Well, Sunday is the day. The day most of us wait for with bated breath, as well as dreading at the same time (or is that just me?) – the Manchester derby. That team in red come to the Etihad on Sunday afternoon and both of us will be hoping and dreaming of a win – for the same, and different, reasons. It’s been almost eight months since the last derby and we’ve almost forgotten what it’s like to face our biggest and oldest rivals.
City are in more desperate of a need for a win than ever at the minute, having won just a third of their last twelve games (this is the worst form since late 2009, and that was a period in which Mark Hughes was sacked). Whilst Pellegrini probably won’t get the sack any time soon, winning the derby might just be the impetus City need to kick on and try to challenge Chelsea for the Premier League and FA Cup titles. With another important game (CSKA Moscow) coming up next week, a win in the derby is vital for The Blues.
In the other camp, a win is just as important. United’s misfortunes were a source of great entertainment for all of us last season, but now they seem to be on the way back thanks to the arrival of Louis van Gaal as well as players like Ángel Di Maria and Radamel Falcao joining the club in the summer. However their start to the season hasn’t been the most consistent of starts, yet a win at the home of the champions could be resounding; it could show the league and the world that United are still capable of great things.
After the defeat to Newcastle on Wednesday, we’re now only challenging on three (realistically, probably two or less) fronts for the remainder of the season. That means winning the big games like this one has become a lot more important all of a sudden. If we want to try and stop Chelsea’s unrelenting surge to the title we need to be picking up all three points in games like Sunday’s.
Whilst City’s injury list at the minute may be small, it is unfortunately significant. In the Capital One Cup game during mid-week, City picked up injuries to David Silva (knee) and Yaya Touré (groin). Whilst Yaya looks like he should make it back to fitness in time (he’ll have a late fitness test prior to the derby), Silva is likely to be out until the back end of November; not only does this keep him out of the derby, but several games afterwards. Frank Lampard (thigh) is still out, but could return ahead of the visit to Queens Park Rangers next weekend.
In the United squad, there are a few absentees ahead of the derby. Whilst some players like Ashley Young (groin) and Jesse Lingard (knee) are not likely to be missed too much, some like Radamel Falcao (calf) who are important have been confirmed to be out of the visit to Eastlands. However Wayne Rooney (ankle) has returned to fitness in time for the visit to United’s cross-city rivals. Antonio Valencia (hamstring) is also back fit, whilst Jonny Evans (ankle) is to have a late fitness test. Paddy McNair (hamstring) and Phil Jones (calf) are both out of the game.
In last season’s two derbies, The Red Devils didn’t have the best of luck under David Moyes; for the second time in three years City completed the double over their biggest rivals. The last time these two met was at Old Trafford in March, in which City were winning inside 40 seconds and didn’t let that lead go. Džeko scored a double, before Yaya Touré wrapped up a 3-0 win with a late run and finish past David De Gea.
In the return fixture last September, United didn’t fare any better. They lost by three goals again, but Rooney did score a free-kick, which turned out to be a consolation in a 4-1 blue win. Agüero scored twice, Yaya once and Samir Nasri with the fourth in a resounding win that set the tone in Manchester for last season. Moyes hadn’t been that bad up to that point, and whilst it certainly didn’t ruin his chances of success, it will have been a contributing factor. The afore-mentioned 3-0 win at Old Trafford six months later likely had a bigger impact on David Moyes losing his job than the Etihad derby.
There’s likely to be even more anticipation surrounding this derby than for a long while. Manuel Pellegrini is under a fair amount of pressure after a run of poor results recently, whilst Van Gaal is keen to show he can live up to the expectations put upon him in the months since he was announced at the new Red Devils boss. Both have very good reasons to need a win; now we just need to sit back and ‘enjoy’ the ride.
