This weekend we have a cracker! The Manchester Derby! Manchester City have been rolling, having fun yet again this season sitting at the top of the league and are tipped as huge favourites, however the recent good form and a win in Turin against Juventus has Manchester United fans optimistic coming into this game. Can Jose pull off another masterclass or will Pep’s men prove to be too much?
Key Facts
Manchester City have won all 6 games at home this season scoring 24 goals (4 on average).
Manchester City have the best attacking (33 goals) and the best defensive (4 goals) record in the league this season.
Man City have kept 9 clean sheets in their last 11 games in all competitions.
Sergio Aguero has 7 goals in 10 apps against Man Utd. Scoreless in his last 3 however.
Raheem Sterling has never scored against Man Utd.
Pep Guardiola has a 9W 7D 5L record against Jose Mourinho for his career. Closely contested rivalry.
On average there are 3.4 goals scored in Man City games this season.
The last time that a home team has won this fixture in the Premier League was in 2015. During the previous 3 seasons an away team won 4 times and there were 2 draws.
Man Utd are unbeaten at the Etihad in 3 consecutive games. 2W 1D.
Anthony Martial has scored in 4 consecutive games for Man Utd in the Premier League. Man in form.
Man Utd have the 4th worst defensive record in the league with 18 goals conceded. They’ve only kept 1 clean sheet in 11 games in the league.
Man Utd have scored 3 90th minute winners in their last 7 games.
Man Utd have came back from a deficit to either win or draw 4 times in their last 7 games.
On average there are 3.4 goals scored in Man Utd games this season.
The previous 5 Manchester derbies have had a total of 29 bookings (5.8 per game). Last season there were 15 bookings in 2 games. Feisty.
Team News
Manchester City: Man City don’t have any serious injury concerns other than the obvious Kevin de Bruyne who is out and Claudio Bravo who is a long term absentee. Expect Aguero to start despite Jesus bagging a hattrick midweek, Mendy should come back in for Zinchenko and Kompany will hope to start aswell. Mahrez and Sterling have been on fire therefore expect them to continue to start on the wings leaving out Sane. Midfield trio of David Silva Fernandinho and Bernardo Silva are expected to stay starting.
Manchester United: There’s a chance that Romelu Lukaku could be fit to play in this match however with the recent success without him, it’s going to be interesting to see if Jose starts him. Dalot is still out however Valencia is fit and will hope to come in for Ashley Young at RB. Mata and Rashford will be hopeful to start but we’ll have to wait and see for that as Jose may elect Lingard and Sanchez or Lukaku instead. There is also competition for midfield places as Fellaini will look to displace Herrera. At the back we can expect Smalling and Lindelof to continue to pair at CB.
Betting Tips and Predictions
In this game we have City as clear favourites at 1.40. Now it’s understandable because they are the best team in England and are playing out of their minds. However, we anticipate this to be a close game. Man Utd have shown improvement in recent weeks they drew with Chelsea when everyone thought they’d get pounded, now they go an beat Juventus and it seems like Jose just knows how to grind out results in big games. Now we’re not saying that United will win but a +1.5 AH at 1.85 does hold nice value here. United also have a really good recent record at Etihad, even managing to win last season here 2-3. We also anticipate there to be about 5-6, maybe even 7 bookings as these derbies tend to get feisty as these clubs don’t like each other. As long as Man Utd don’t crumble defensively they should be able to stay in this game until the end and make it tough on the Champions. Our prediction is a 2-1 win for Manchester City. Anthony Martial to score is priced at a crazy 4.50, worth the try, he’s been scoring for fun recently!
Match Odds (TonyBet)
Manchester City Win – 1.40
Draw – 5.25
Manchester United Win – 8.20
KICK OFF – 11th November 2018 – 4:30pm UK Time
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