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Ahead of the Manchester Derby on Sunday, we decided to try our hand at playing god and picking out a combined Manchester City and Manchester United XI, just to see how scary the eventual team would be.So, with a view to try and keep the players who have been in the best form as part of the team, we present to you the Manchester XI.Formation: 4-2-3-1The players that are unavailable for the game have been overlooked for the combined XI. Disclaimer: The views expressed here are those of the author and do not reflect those of the site.
#1 Goalkeeper: David De Gea
Perhaps the easiest decision was to pick the goalkeeper for this team. While Joe Hart has had a decent start to the season, David de Gea has had an even better one. The Spaniard has pulled off some stunning saves this season already, the most recent being a brilliant save to deny Eden Hazard a sublime goal.
Despite playing behind an ever-changing and inexperienced backline, the Spaniard has managed to keep two clean sheets. On a number of occasions, the Spaniard has pulled off outrageous saves to keep his side in the game.
The Spaniard is maturing into a solid, reliable and sound keeper after an initial wobble, and easily slots into the goalkeeper position for our combined XI.
#2 Right back: Pablo Zabaleta
A no-brainer. Zabaleta is everything Rafael isn’t – reliable, disciplined and focused. He has become a mainstay in the City defense over the past couple of seasons, and has been the man Pelligrini turns to on a weekly basis. Although Bacary Sagna was signed in the summer to boost the rightback department, Zabaleta is clearyly first-choice at City.
The Argentinian also outscores Rafael in the attacking department, with 2 assists to the Brazilian’s 1. Clearly the man to keep the right flank secure in our Manchester dream team.
#3 Centre back: Vincent Kompany
While Kompany has, lately, not been the imperious rock that he was in City’s title-winning campaign last season, the Belgian is still one of the best in the world in his position and brings a lot of stability to the City defense.
His no-nonsense, front-foot defending amd organisational skills have often allowed City to play higher-up the pitch and attack their opponents. Yet to score this season, Kompany is still a disruptive influence for the opposition during set-pieces, drawing the biggest defenders towards him.
Good enough for one of the two centreback positions in our team.
#4 Centre back: Marcos Rojo
The only defender from Manchester United in this squad, and it’s the new boy Marcos Rojo. It speaks volumes of United’s disorganized and suicidal defense that Rojo is perhaps the best of all the defenders used so far by Van Gaal. Rojo has, along with Rafael, started the most matches (6) of all the defenders, and played the most minutes. Over the past few matches, when United put together a decent run, Rojo has shown that he can be a reliable defender.
Once United’s defensive and injury woes are sorted, Rojo can, with a steady partner, look at cementing a place in the hearts of United fans. And hopefully perform at the levels of Vidic or Ferdinand and become the rock the team needs at the back. God knows they need one.
#5 Left back: Gael Clichy
Another no-brainer. United have used a plethora of options on the left, with Rojo, Blackett and Shaw all having been tried out at various points. It seems Shaw will be the eventual, first-choice left back for Van Gaal, but it remains a position of debate.
No such issues for Pellegrini, with Gael Clichy the first-choice at City. Despite stiff competition from Aleksandar Kolarov, Clichy has made the leftback berth his own with some fine performances this season.
With an average of 3.5 tackles per game, Clichy’s reliability and effectiveness as a defender has been there for everyone to see. He joins his fellow defenders to make up the back four of our dream team.
#6 Right Winger: James Milner
Samir Nasris injury lay-off has coincided with Milners growing influence on the way City play, with the Englishmans link-up play with the likes of Aguero and Silva a joy to behold.
It seems strange to mention Milner in the same breath as his more esteemed teammates, but such has been his presence for City. Versatile, consistent and positionally sound, the Englishmanis the unsung hero of Manchester City, and is slowly becoming more and more a regular in Pellegrinis mind.
Along with Zabaleta, Milners presence ensures a secure and creative right flank.
#7 Central Midfielder: Daley Blind
Another one of Manchester United’s new recruits makes the cut, and it’s the Dutch international Daley Blind. Coming off an excellent World Cup where he featured in a left wingback position, Blind’s presence in central midfield for Manchester United has been a fantastic sight for fans.
Blind’s ability to spot the right pass, make himself available to the defenders and his general tendency to keep play ticking over has been well-recieved. The metronomic midfielder has also shown that he has a good shot on him, attempting shots when needed (his accuracy could be better) from outside the box – a rare sight for the fans, and a welcome one.
#8 Central Midfield: Ander Herrera
After protracted negotiations and a failed transfer move last summer, Manchester United finally got their man from Athletic Bilbao for a hefty transfer fee. But recent displays from the Spaniard have shown that United were right to splash the cash to fix a glaring deficiency in the squad.
Blessed with technical skills that we have to come expect from every Spanish player, Herrera’s inury-marked start to life in the red shirt has made for good viewing. A constant movement on the field and an ability to start attacks out of nothing, Herrera offers a lot to the United team.
With 2 goals and an assist in 5 matches, it is clear that the 25-year-old has the potential to be the box-to-box midfielder that United fans have been craving for.
#9 Left winger: Angel Di Maria
Manchester United’s record-signing has taken the EPL by storm, and has been the one continuous bright spark amidst a mixed campaign.
3 goals, 4 assists, and 3.3 key passes per game – the stats say it all. Di Maria has been Manchester United’s most creative outlet and offers something that United fans have been missing since Ronaldo – the X factor.
Di Maria’s walks into the left winger position in our team and will be a mainstay in the United team for a long time to come.
#10 Center Attacking Midfielder: David Silva
Easily the most creative player in the league, and the most pleasing on the eye. David Silva’s importance to the City team cannot be understated, and the Spaniard often carries the team over the finishing line.
2 goals, 2 assists, 2.4 key passes per game – the Spaniard is the creative hub of our team. His ability to probe without relenting in search of a goal, and keeping the opposition defence always on tenterhooks is a joy to watch.
Note: David Silva is assumed to be fit for the Manchester derby. If the Spaniard does not recover in time, then Samir Nasri takes his place.
#11 Striker: Sergio Aguero
9 goals in 7 games and it’s been a great start to the season for the Argentinian hitman. Aguero has seemingly put his injury-woes behind him and if he continues with his current form, City will go far in the race for the title.
With a misfiring Robin van Persie, an unfit Radamel Falcao and a slightly out-of-sorts Wayne Rooney for competition, Aguero is the clear candidate for the striker’s slot in our team.
#12 Manager: Louis van Gaal
Clearly the more tactically versatile of the two Manchester club managers, Van Gaal taks his place as the manager of the combined XI of Manchester. He has spoken a lot about needing time and the fact that players need to absorb his philosophy completely, but the results have shown that the team are slowly but steadily developing in the right direction and moving towards becoming a team that performs at a level close to what is expected from a Manchester United team.
Substitutes: Joe Hart, Wayne Rooney, Juan Mata, Samir Nasri, Robin van Persie, Yaya Toure, Stefan Jovetic
The players would line-up in a 4-2-3-1 formation, as follows:
