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Former Arsenal defender Bacary Sagna has backed Manchester City to beat Manchester United on October 2 in the Premier League.
Both teams are in great form heading into the derby. The Red Devils are on a four-match winning streak in the league while Pep Guardiola's side is unbeaten in the league this season.
Despite dominating the English league, City have a poor record against their local rivals of late. They have lost five of their last eight home derbies against United.
However, former Arsenal and City defender Sagna has backed his former team to beat the Red Devils this weekend. The former French defender told Lord Ping:
"I can’t see anyone other than City winning this match. I think City will win 3-0."
Sagna was reminded of his former team's dismal record against United and asked if it would cause a hindrance this weekend. He replied:
"No. I can’t see United causing City too many problems at all."
Former Manchester City defender hails Erling Haaland
Sagna was also full of praise for new Manchester City boy Erling Haaland. The Norwegian striker joined the Etihad outfit from Borussia Dortmund this summer. He has made a successful start to life in England, scoring 14 goals in 10 games.
Asked to choose a standout player for the Manchester derby, Sagna backed Haaland to come out guns blazing for the game.
"It has to be Halaand. After the start that he has had, the fact that there were stories about the possibility of him joining United before he went to Dortmund, but they didn’t do it, I think he will want to show them what they missed out on. If I had to pick another one, I would say Kevin (De Bruyne) because we all know what he can do."
Fabrizio Romano had previously reported that former Manchester United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer had attempted to sign Haaland when he was playing for RB Salzburg. However, the 22-year-old striker joined Dortmund, instead.
On the fitness front, Manchester City will be without the services of John Stones, who has been ruled out due to a hamstring injury. United will be concerned over Marcus Rashford, whose fitness concerns saw him miss action for the Three Lions in the last two Nations League matches.
