Manchester City and Manchester United played out probably one of the dullest Manchester derbies in recent times as the two sides drew 0-0.
Jose Mourinho’s side clearly set out to frustrate and limit Pep Guardiola’s side to very little in the way of clear-cut chances, and despite hoping to catch Manchester City on the break they failed to really threaten what has proven to be a very leaky defence this season.
How did the players do on an individual basis? Here, we’ll rate each of the players.
Manchester City
Claudio Bravo – 6/10
Bravo was almost made to pay in the first half for a poor attempt at a punch when he could have left it for Kolarov to clear. He had nothing else to do in the game and was a mere spectator in the second half, and was also stretchered off after sustaining a calf injury.
Pablo Zabaleta – 6/10
The right-back didn’t really overlap enough considering how much his side had the ball but with Martial’s pace on his wing, he was probably justified in staying put most of the time.
Vincent Kompany – 7/10
The Manchester City captain made very good use of the ball for a centre-half, but wasn’t really threatened at all. His timing of the tackle was impressive when he was called upon.
Nicholas Otamendi – 7/10
The central defender had a half decent chance to give his team the lead from a corner but was foiled by the back of Bailly’s head. Much like his defensive partner, he won’t have asked for an easier night.
Aleksandar Kolarov – 7/10
Like Zabaleta, he was hesitant to really go beyond his teammate in front of him but it was obvious they were scared of Manchester United’s pace. He put in a few decent deliveries into the box and forced a good save out of David de Gea.
Yaya Toure – 7/10
The Ivorian midfielder orchestrated the Manchester City midfield and dictated the play. He was a little bit slow at times but even at his age, his quality on the ball shone through.
Fernandinho – 8/10
The Manchester City midfielder wasn’t shy of getting physical and flying into tackles, but he was never dirty though. He put in a very solid performance and was reliable in winning the ball back.
Raheem Sterling – 6/10
The winger tried his best and not a lot happened for him. He did not have a lot of space for him to utilise his blistering pace.
Kevin De Bruyne – 6/10
The Belgian is looking a little bit of a shadow of the Kevin De Bruyne we were all excited by last season and earlier in this season. He faded out the game at times but had shown little glimpses of the player we know he can be.
Leroy Sane – 5/10
Sane was lucky not to feel Pep’s wrath at half-time after allowing Ander Herrera to run free at a set piece. Luckily for him, the Spaniard couldn’t find the target. He had a very quiet first half and nothing worked for him and the second half was much of the same.
Sergio Aguero – 5/10
Aguero squandered chance after chance. He was involved in every attack but was wasteful in his finishing. The finishing is not what you expect from someone of his ability.
Substitutes
Willy Caballero (N/A)
Caballero came on late in the game for the injured Bravo and didn’t have a save to make.
Jesus Navas – 5/10
Navas was brought in to add pace to the Manchester City attack, but although he couldn’t get past the United backline, he put in a few teasing crosses.
Gabriel Jesus – 7/10
Jesus made his much-awaited return from injury and almost had the Midas touch when he scored a goal which was ruled out for offside.
Manchester United
David de Gea – 8/10
The Spanish keeper pulled off a couple decent saves in the opening 45 minutes to keep his side level and continued to hold everything coming his way in the second half as well.
Antonio Valencia – 6/10
The Red Devils’ right-back kept Leroy Sane quiet but did rarely contributed to attacks.
Eric Bailly – 8/10
Excellent performance all round from Bailly who kept the space available in his box to a minimum and frustrated City’s forwards.
Daley Blind – 7/10
The Dutchman formed a good partnership with Bailly and looked solid for the most part, but will count himself lucky that Aguero didn’t punish him for a few chances.
Matteo Darmian – 8/10
Darmian contributed a lot more in attack than Valencia early on, but was later forced into his own half for the rest of the game. The Italian put a very impressive performance and kept Raheem Sterling quiet.
Ander Herrera – 6/10
The Spanish midfielder had a golden opportunity to put his side 1-0 before half-time and squandered it. He had to focus on the defensive side of his game and was fairly disciplined.
Michael Carrick – 7/10
Carrick was very calm in possession, especially when he was rushed into passes from City’s midfield. He needed a more creative influence beside him to create more chances for Manchester United.
Marouane Fellaini – 4/10
Fellaini wasn’t really having the greatest of games before he saw red near the end for a headbutt on Sergio Aguero, just seconds after receiving a yellow card for a foul.
Henrikh Mkhitaryan – 5/10
The Armenian put in an anonymous performance. His one shot on goal was when Bravo’s poor punch fell to him, but he hit it straight back at the Chilean goalkeeper.
Marcus Rashford – 6/10
Rashford showed his pace early on that frightened Otamendi but after that, he was far too isolated.
Anthony Martial – 6/10
The Frenchman didn’t really cause problems for Manchester City’s defence and with his pace, many would have expected him to run at Zabaleta at every opportunity. He tracked back to help his defence.
Substitutes
Jesse Lingard – 5/10
Lingard was brought on in the 80th minute for Martial and didn't do much going forward
Timothy Fosu-Mensah – 6/10
The youngster was brought on after Fellaini’s red card and closed down the Manchester City midfield. He sustained a late injury which could see him miss the rest of the season
Ashley Young – (N/A)
Young was brought on late in the game and didn’t do much to be awarded a rating.
