Manchester United vs Manchester City (Premier League): Match Preview, Team News, Stats, Head to Head, How to Watch | OneFootball

Manchester City return to Premier League action this Sunday as they travel to rivals Manchester United to face off in a much-anticipated derby at Old Trafford.

Pep Guardiola and his players will be determined to secure three points in such a significant fixture and look to finish the campaign strong as they battle for a top-four finish to secure UEFA Champions League football next season.

Last time out, City cruised to a comfortable 2-0 victory at the Etihad Stadium against a struggling Leicester City side, with Jack Grealish and Omar Marmoush on the scoresheet for the Blues in midweek.

United enter the game in rather inconsistent form, having won twice in their last five in all competitions, drawing two and losing their most recent fixture against high-flying Nottingham Forest.

Three points would be invaluable to the City who sit in fifth place in the league table – a point behind Chelsea and a point above Newcastle United.

For 13th-placed United, any hopes of European football have been extinguished after a very poor campaign overall. However, in historic rivalries like this, it’s often not about the three points but about the pride of victory against local rivals and how much it means to the fans, so it is certain that both sides will give everything to come away with a win.

Here’s everything you need to know ahead of this fierce contest – the last Manchester derby that will witness Kevin De Bruyne in a City shirt.

Match Details

Manchester City travel to Old Trafford to take on local rivals Manchester United this Sunday afternoon with kick-off scheduled for 16:30 GMT.

Match Officials

The Premier League has confirmed that John Brooks will take charge as referee as Manchester United take on Manchester City on Sunday afternoon. The supporting officials are as follows:

Assistant Referees – Simon Bennett and Dan Robathan

Fourth Official – Tony Harrington

Video Assistant Referees – Paul Tierney

Assistant Video Assistant Referee – Tim Wood

Team News

For the Blues, some somewhat positive news amongst a bleak period in terms of injuries is that Oscar Bobb is back fit and available for City, with the Norwegian making a short cameo midweek after his extensive period on the sidelines.

Aside from this, however, it is unfortunate news for Guardiola with three defenders – Manuel Akanji, Nathan Ake and John Stones – all still confirmed to be out, although it is understood that they are all making somewhat positive developments on the road to recovery.

Rodri remains absent, still recovering from his ACL injury in September, although there is optimism that the Spaniard may be able to return for the FIFA Club World Cup in the United States.

Erling Haaland will remain out for the vast majority of what remains of this season following his injury against Bournemouth last weekend.

Abdudokir Khusanov may be back in contention for selection by Guardiola after missing the Blues’ last two fixtures vs AFC Bournemouth and Leicester City for reasons unrelated to injury, according to reports.

For the home side, Manchester United midfielder Kobbie Mainoo could return after a two-month absence with a calf injury.

Matthijs de Ligt is ruled out after picking up an injury against Nottingham Forest; it was thought he would make the squad but his fitness has not improved. Ayden Heaven, Jonny Evans, Lisandro Martinez and Luke Shaw are also all still out.

Head To Head

In their last fixture, the Red Devils stunned City with a quick-fire double at death following defensive capitulation from the Blues.

Josko Gvardiol, a player who City have been able to count on on so many occasions during this difficult season, put the Blues 1-0 up just past the half-hour mark after a brilliantly executed corner routine and an excellent header past Andre Onana.

Both sides struggled to create many clear-cut chances, and just as City thought they might secure a narrow 1-0 victory, a rash challenge on Amad Diallo by Matheus Nunes in an attempt to win the ball back after a poor mistake gave Manchester United a penalty, which Bruno Fernandes dispatched coolly.

Subsequently, sensing the home side’s defensive fragility, especially down the right flank up against a Kyle Walker in poor form, they launched a long ball over to Amad Diallo, who crept in between both centre-backs, chipped over Ederson and won it for the visitors at the death. A shock win for United but abysmal defending from City.

Historically, this fixture has favoured City’s opponents, with City winning 56 of the 173 previous clashes, whilst United have won 68, with the other 49 ending in a draw.

Statistics

Manchester United are looking to complete just their first Premier League double over Manchester City since 2019-20, following their 2-1 win at the Etihad Stadium in December. Manchester City have won more Premier League away games against Manchester United than any other side (9). Five of their nine wins have come under Pep Guardiola, the most of any visiting manager in the competition.

Manchester City have won more Premier League away games against Manchester United than any other side (9). Five of their nine wins have come under Pep Guardiola, the most of any visiting manager in the competition.

The away team has won 10 of the last 18 Premier League meetings between Manchester United and Manchester City (D2 L6), and since the 2015-16 campaign, the only Premier League fixture with more away wins is Crystal Palace versus Liverpool (12).

Manchester United have gone eight Premier League matches at Old Trafford without keeping a clean sheet, their longest run since a run of 12 between April and December 2021. They’ve shipped 17 in nine games under Ruben Amorim, with the Portuguese coach having the worst goals conceded per game ratio of any permanent Red Devils manager on home soil in the Premier

Manchester City have lost six of their last 11 away Premier League matches (W3 D2), as many as they had in their previous 37 away games combined (W26 D5 L6). They’ve only lost more than six away games in one of the last 13 seasons (seven in 2019-20).

How To Watch

In the United Kingdom, you can watch this huge derby clash on Sky Sports Football / NOW TV, with action getting underway from 16:30 GMT.

For fans in the United States, the game will be live on many platforms, such as Peacock and many others, from 11:30 EST.

You can find the full global TV listings for this match here!

City Xtra will have full live coverage available on our X (formerly Twitter), Facebook, and Instagram channels throughout Wednesday evening, with content also provided on cityxtra.co.uk and YouTube!