2023-10-29 15:15:45
Pep Guardiola’s team was very offensive from the start, trying to press high while United, with their bets on the counterattack, worked close to the goal defended by Ederson but without dangerous arrivals.
It didn’t take long for the first key scoring opportunity, when in a Manchester City attack on the wings in the seventh minute, Erling Haaland had the chance under the goal after a short rebound from a Foden header. Onana, however, recovered to take the ball on the line and drown out the Norwegian’s scream.
The former Borussia Dortmund was going to have a new opportunity to open the scoring and he did not waste it, when at 25 minutes the referee Paul Tierney awarded a penalty after checking with the VAR a grab on Rodri inside the area in a free kick play. In the twelve steps, the scorer was relentless and placed the ball next to the Cameroonian goalkeeper’s right post.
The Manchester classic adds a new chapter this Sunday because United and City face each other as part of matchday 10 of the Premier League. In a duel full of figures, the two most important teams in the English city will seek to win to bring joy to their fans and climb the standings.
Pep Guardiola’s team comes into the match with a record of seven wins and two losses in the competition, a performance that has them in the fight for the first places in the table led by Tottenham with 26 points. If they win, the Citizens would be two units behind the London team.
For this reason, the Spanish coach will not hold anything back and a formation is expected in which the team’s big names will appear at the start, such as Erling Haaland, who has just scored two goals against Young Boys in the Champions League, Julián Álvarez, Bernardo Silva , Jack Grealish and Phil Foden, as the great references in the attack.
In the previous press conference, Guardiola was cautious: “In the end, it is a football match. It’s not like the FA Cup final or games in which winning or losing can define whether or not you win the Premier League. It is still the tenth round, so there are 87 points left to play, it is another game and you have to be focused on what you have to do to beat them.”
For its part, Erik ten Hag’s Manchester United is going through an irregular start to the campaign with five wins and four losses so far in the Premier League, so winning today would be vital to obtain the necessary emotional boost to get into the high table discussion.
“I think it is a match that is above many other classics. It’s very important, because internally it’s about Manchester, but it’s about international football too. The eyes of the world will be on this match,” declared the Dutchman in the preview and added: “We are going in the right direction, but we still have a way to go, because we are not playing at the level we want consistently. Likewise, we have the highest number of ball recoveries in the entire league. So, our defensive organization can be seen. Now we just have to try to benefit in the attacking transition moments. “If we can achieve that, I think the games can become easier for us.”
Possible formations
Manchester United: André Onana; Victor Lindelöf, Jonny Evans, Harry Maguire, Diogo Dalot; Antony, Sofyan Amrabat, Bruno Fernandes, Scott McTominay and Marcus Rashford; Rasmus Hojlund. DT: Erik ten Hag.
Manchester City: Stefan Ortega; Kyle Walker, John Stones, Ruben Dias and Josh Gvardiol; Bernardo Silva, Rodri, Phil Foden, Julian Alvarez and Jeremy Doku; Erling Haaland. DT: Pep Guardiola.
Time: 12.30 (Argentina)
TV: ESPN
Referee: Paul Tierney
Estadio: Old Trafford
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