Manchester City made a statement of intent by thrashing neighbours Manchester United 6-3 to win the bragging rights at the Etihad Stadium.
Hat-tricks from Erling Haaland and Phil Foden got the job done for the Cityzens in the 187th Manchester derby across all competitions. A long-range strike from Antony followed by a late brace from substitute Anthony Martial helped salvage some pride for Erik ten Hag’s wounded side. However, Ten Hag will have a lot to ponder after Man United’s dismal defeat to cross-town rivals.
On that note, here are the talking from the latest installment of the Manchester derby.
- Highest-scoring Mancunian derby
This was the first time the Manchester derby witnessed a nine-goal thriller. Man City had raced to a 4-0 lead at half-time and then held a 6-1 advantage at one point. But Man United didn’t give up—a late brace from Anthony Martial gave something to cheer for the away fans.
Pep Guardiola’s were undoubtedly the dominant side and could have scored more on another day. They conceded two goals late in the game after having seemingly taken the foot off the gas. As for Man United, they were beaten and bruised in the first half itself but Ten Hag would have liked his team’s fighting spirit until the end of the final whistle.
The scoreline was an emphatic one in City’s favour and a derby that will live long in the memories of their fans.
- Man City send ominous warning to the rest of the Premier League
Sunday’s edition of the Manchester derby was not just memorable for the goal-fest, but how far Man City are far from their rivals and the rest of the Premier League.
The Sky Blues meant business from the first blow of the whistle and carved open United on numerous occasions in the first half. While they took the foot off the gas after the interval, Guardiola’s side still managed to score two goals as both Haaland and Foden completed their hat-tricks.
Despite missing Rodri at the base of the midfield and John Stones in defence, the manner in which City made light work of the Red Devils and demolished them in the derby was quite scary.
- Erling Haaland makes his mark
Before the derby, the spotlight was well and truly on Erling Haaland, and boy he delivered!
The Norwegian started slowly but came alive when required as he got the better of a centre-back pairing of Varane and Martinez, who had been praised since coming together for United’s win over Liverpool at Old Trafford. United simply had no answer to his movement, pace, power and ruthless finishing.
After scoring City’s fifth, Haaland became the first player to score a Premier League hat trick in three successive home games. In addition, the striker also showed he can perform in the big names, thereby, quashing the “flat-track” debate.
- Erik ten Hag gets it all wrong in the derby
Erik ten Hag’s first Mancunian derby as the United boss is something he will like to forget as quickly as possible.
After wins over Liverpool and Arsenal this season, the Red Devils seemed to have turned around a corner but City gave them a brutal reality check. Ten Hag got his game plan completely wrong when he stuck to the same XI that beat Arsenal before the international break, retaining the Eriksen-McTominay partnership in midfield.
The likes of De Bruyne, Bernardo Silva, Ilkay Gundogan and Phil Foden ran circles around Eriksen and McTominay, as the United midfield duo got completely overran. Ten Hag’s plan went out of the window inside 45 minutes and until Casemiro came on to give United some semblance of control in midfield, the game was well and truly lost.
The Dutchman isn’t the only Man United boss to get thrashed by Guardiola’s City, but against ‘top six 6’ sides a bit more pragmatism while team selection will be expected from him next time. A chastening afternoon for Ten Hag and his team.
