Manchester United drew goalless with Manchester City at Old Trafford on Sunday, April 6, leaving the reigning Champions with 52 points in 31 matches.
United, meanwhile, are 13th with 38 points from the same number of matches.
Manchester City trail Chelsea by a point and should find it considerably tough to get into the top four by the end of the season.
Sunday’s match underlined the fact that the English champions have lost the edge in their attack.
Manchester City Used Kevin De Bruyne in a New Role
De Bruyne was playing in his 21st and likely last Manchester Derby.
After having played on the left flank in a recent match against AFC Bournemouth, the Belgian midfielder played as a false nine in the first half against United in Erling Haaland’s absence.
Omar Marmoush played on the left, Bernardo Silva on the right, and Phil Foden as the No. 10. Ilkay Gundogan and Mateo Kovacic started as the double pivot, but Bernardo played in a defensive role in the second half.
Marmoush played upfront during the last quarter of the match, with De Bruyne switching back to the role of a No. 10.
However, the concerning thing for Pep Guardiola’s side was the fact that they failed to do much inside the opposition penalty box for the most part.
Manchester City dominated ball-possession, which was expected, but Manchester United looked sharper in their attacks, especially in the second half.
There were a plethora of passes in the middle third, but de Bruyne and City’s other attackers lacked the edge to make it count in the final third.
Nico O’Reilly started as the left-back but failed to get past Diogo Dalot down the left flank. Matheus Nunes did not have much of an impact offensively either but had a good match defensively against Alejandro Garnacho.
United had five men in their defence for the most part and relied on Garnacho to launch their counter-attacks through the left flank.
However, Rasmus Hojlund and Bruno Fernandes had vital roles in shaping United’s counter-attacks in the second half as well.
Had it not been for some solid defensive work by the likes of Ruben Dias and Nunes, Manchester City might have conceded a goal during the last 45 minutes.
Guardiola threw in Jack Grealish, Jeremy Doku and Rico Lewis in the second half, but things hardly changed in terms of the intensity of their attacks.
The hosts tried hard for what would have been a morale-boosting win for them, but things ended in a stalemate.
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: Kevin De Bruyne Remains One of the Greatest Premier League Players of All Time
Tough Battle At the Villa
The Cityzens will take on Aston Villa in the last week of April. Prior to that, they will face Crystal Palace and Everton, both of which could potentially be tough ones as well.
The Red Devils, meanwhile, will face Newcastle United and Wolverhampton Wanderers in their next two league matches.
Finishing inside the top half will definitely be a priority for Ruben Amorim. On the other hand, missing out on Champions League football will be a significant blow to Manchester City’s pride.
Can Guardiola’s men finish inside the top four to salvage some pride?
Main Photo
Credit: IMAGO / Action Plus
Recording Date: 07.04.2025