Manchester United claimed bragging rights at the Etihad with a 1-0 win over Manchester City on Sunday. Marcus Rashford scored a goal in the first half on his derby debut to give the Red Devils the lead which they held on to despite a number of opportunities for City to equalise.
The result will help United’s top four chances, now tied with fifth-placed West Ham on 50 points. On the other hand, City will see this as a lost opportunity to close in on Arsenal and will now look over their shoulder in the final stretch of the season.
Squads
Man City: Hart, Sagna, Demichelis, Mangala, Clichy, Fernandinho, Toure, Navas, Silva, Sterling, Aguero
Man Utd: De Gea, Darmian, Smalling, Blind, Rojo, Carrick, Schneiderlin, Lingard, Mata, Martial, Rashford
Louis van Gaal opted to play Marcus Rashford up front to take on the pairing of Martin Demichelis and Eliaquim Mangala who had not started together since the loss to Liverpool. Anthony Martial started out on the left flank while City had Raheem Sterling and Jesus Navas either side of Sergio Aguero.
Marcus Rashford gives United the lead
Manchester City revealed their intentions early when they attacked right from kickoff with Jesus Navas scampering down the right flank to beat Marcos Rojo and win a corner kick after Darmian headed the cross away from danger. The Spanish winger was also on hand to test his compatriot in the United goal with a shot but De Gea saved it with his feet.
Sergio Aguero was also causing problems, drawing out Chris Smalling and forcing the English defender to pull him back after the striker beat him for pace. Just nine minutes into the game and Smalling was already on a yellow card, bringing back memories of his sending off in the derby last season.
But 15 minutes into the game, United took the lead thanks to a poor error. Marcus Rashford had received the ball outside the box and invited Demichelis to attempt a tackle. The 35-year-old defender was too slow going in for the block, allowing the quick Rashford to dribble right past him, open up his body and guide the ball past Joe Hart to make it 1-0 on his derby debut.
The evening got worse for Pellegrini when Sterling seemed to suffer an injury he was fouled by Juan Mata. Although the foul on his shin itself was innocuous, the English winger held his groin after going down and was eventually substituted him for Fernando. The substitution saw Silva move to the left with Yaya Toure taking up the no.10 role behind Aguero.
City had the opportunity to equalise when they won a free-kick on the right, near the corner flag. The delivery from Navas was sent to the near post but flicked on towards the far post where Toure looked all set to score but scuffed his shot wide. Although he claimed Michael Carrick pulled him down in the battle to get to the ball, referee Michael Oliver was having none of it.
The referee was in the heat of the action again in hirst half stoppage time when he refused to give United a penalty after Rashford was brought down inside the box. Rojo and Schneiderlin had combined well to release Rashford who kissed the goal line before Demichelis barged into him.
A mini-brawl followed with players from both sides jostling each other before Oliver brought some control to proceeedings. Even Van Gaal was furious on the touchline for not being awarded a penalty for the foul.
Half-Time: Manchester City 0-1 Manchester United
Second half sees forced substitutions
The second half saw City lose Joe Hart to injury even before they were allowed to settle down. A loose back-pass from Demichelis saw Anthony Martial attempt to pounce on the opportunity presented as both he and Hart rushed to a 50-50 ball. Hart managed the clear the ball in the end but not before he injured himself in the process with Martial coming away unscathed.
The English goalkeeper was initially treated on the pitch before he was stretchered off as Capital One Cup final hero Willy Caballero came on. Pellegrini then opted to use his third and final substitution in the 52nd minute of the game as Wilfried Bony came on for the struggling Demichelis. Fernandinho moved into central defence to partner Mangala while Bony partnered with Aguero up front.
The Ivorian striker was in the thick of the action straight away, managing to get a header on target which saw De Gea hold on to the effort. Aguero also had a fantastic chance to equalise when Toure’s cross to the near post saw the Argentine striker get ahead of Smalling and shoot, only to hit the post and be denied a goal.
Van Gaal then made a bizarre substitution and brought on Bastian Schweinsteiger for Juan Mata. United’s midfield now had the German World Cup winner, Carrick and Schneiderlin with Schweinsteiger playing in the hole behind Rashford.
Aguero tries his best to bring City level
Aguero kept getting the better of Smalling and on one occasion the defender flirted with danger when he tripped Aguero who was trying to turn away and make a run. While City vociferously appealed for a second yellow, referee Oliver was adamant that it wasn’t worthy of a yellow card.
Timothy Fosu-Mensah then came on when Mateo Darmian was unable to continue due to cramps. It was a second full-back substitution for United as Rojo had also come off earlier with Antonio Valencia coming on.
Six minutes of time was added due to Hart’s injury and Aguero almost made United pay in the 91st minute. A cross-field ball found Aguero inside the box and he chested it down to leave Valencia off balance. The snapshot was quick but wide of the target – a warning for United.
But in the end, United held on despite some nerve-racking moments and the final whistle saw elation from the red half of Manchester as Van Gaal’s side took home all three points.
