A more detailed look at Sunday’s Manchester derby

Manchester City v Manchester United preview

City host United on Sunday in the first Manchester derby of the season. 

Authors | Liam C and Macca

Stadium | Etihad Stadium 

United players celebrate their win last season

Ahead of the game, there a lot of questions that fans will want answered. This article will explore some of them.

Number 1 question | Which keepers will start?

Will new the goalkeepers start at both ends of the pitch? For City, ut seems like Gianluigi Donnarumma will come straight in for his debutm However, ifJames Trafford starts, fans shouldn't be surprised.

United also have a big call to make in goal with young Turkish goalkeeper Altay Bayindir struggling early in the season and highly-rated Belgian stopper Sanne Lemmens arrived from Antwerp on deadline day. We explored more of this in a recent GM Super News article.

How about the defences?

Central defence remains a major concern for Pep Guardiola. For a match of this magnitude, Ruben Dias is expected to return to the starting line-up despite his poor start to the season. If John Stones has recovered from his injury, he will partner Dias, otherwise Guardiola is likely to turn to Nathan Aké, while also hoping that fellow centre-backs Joško Gvardiol has overcome his fitness problems.

For United, they have the rare luxury of a settled back three.  The combination of Leny Yoro, Matthijs de Ligt and Luke Shaw are perhaps the most solid and settled part of United’s team.

The other players that could be key in an attacking sense

Phil Foden's return will be a massive boost for the home side. He missed the defeat at Brighton before the international break as he wasn't fully fit but expected to start against United.

City’s other obvious threat is Haaland. He has scored 88 goals in 100 Premier League matches for Guardiola’s side and scored a hat-trick on his derby debut in 2022. This helped City record a 6-3 win.

The scoreboard when City beat United in 2022

Amad Diallo was the star of the show in last season’s fixture. He scored a late winner as United left the Etihad with three points.  He's expected to once again start at Right Wing Back and be pivotal to United's hopes of a similar result. 

The other question is, when will Benjamin Sesko finally start matches for Manchester United? This is a question that continues to circle among supporters. Should he start for Amorim’s side, it would represent a perfect chance for him to score his first United goal.

Our prediction

City’s inconsistent form and injury issues makes us believe that United can get a result here. If summer signing Cunha is fit, there's every chance they can take three points. We're going 3-2 to the red side of Manchester and potentially, an early contender match of the season.