Man City vs Man Utd Preview, Team News, Likely Line-Ups, Key Man & Predicted Score

Manchester City welcome fierce rivals Manchester United to the Etihad Stadium on Sunday afternoon for the first Manchester derby of the season.

The game will see Manuel Pellegrini and David Moyes given their first taste of a Manchester derby since taking over at their new clubs in the summer, and it gives both sides the opportunity to deal an early blow to their rivals title hopes.

Both City and United have made stuttering starts to the new season having drawn one and lost one of their opening four games, although Moyes would point out that his side have endured the more difficult start having played Chelsea and Liverpool already.

The Scot will also be buoyed by his own personal record at the Etihad that’s seen him win on four of his last six visits while he was Everton boss, so he’ll be looking to continue that superb run this weekend.

City head into the game after a comfortable 3-0 win over Viktoria Plzen on Tuesday while United also got off to a winning start in the Champions League with a 4-2 victory over Bayer Leverkusen at Old Trafford.

United won the corresponding fixture in dramatic fashion last season, with Robin Van Persie scoring an injury-time winner to secure a 3-2 win, and Moyes would bite your hand off if you offered a similar result this time around.

Team News

Man City have received a major boost after captain Vincent Kompany came through ninety minutes in midweek and is fit to face the champions. The Belgian hasn’t featured in the Premier League since the opening day of the season but is expected to continue alongside Nastasic at the back on Sunday.

Pellegrini could also recall David Silva after the midfielder returned to training on Friday, while Micah Richards and Gael Clichy are also close to making a comeback. However, Martin Demichelis remains out with a knee injury.

Summer signing Alvaro Negrado is pushing for a start in place of Edin Dzeko up front.

Moyes is unlikely to make too many changes from the side that beat Leverkusen in midweek but Ashley Young could come back in for Shinji Kagawa – who started his first game of the season against the Germans.

Danny Welbeck remains a doubt and with Phil Jones and Rafael still unavailable, it looks as though Chris Smalling will continue to fill in at right back.

Likely Line-Ups

Key Man

Wayne Rooney: The England ace helped himself to a double in midweek and is hitting top form after returning to full fitness following a troublesome summer. We think Rooney is the one to watch in the derby and has spiced things up before the game by claiming that United’s real rivals are Liverpool, not City.

Predicted Score

Man City 1-1 Man Utd: Two excellent sides who will be right up there at the end of the season, but we can’t separate them this weekend and can see a low scoring draw on the cards.

What would your team be and what’s your predicted score for the game? Share your views below.