Pep Guardiola’s Sky Blues have taken bragging rights in the first Manchester Derby of the season with a 2-1 win at Old Trafford.
The visitors raced out to a 2-0 lead thanks to goals from Kevin De Bruyne and Kelechi Iheanacho, charging out of the blocks to dominate the opening exchanges.
United hit back through Zlatan Ibrahimovic and will be disappointed to have not at least grabbed a share of the points.
Manchester United
David De Gea – 6: Was not at fault for either of the goals, passed the ball well and made a couple of comfortable saves.
Antonio Valencia – 5.5: Confidence grew as he managed to get further forward, but lacked the final ball he has shown in the early stages of the season.
Eric Bailly – 6: The young defender showed signs of his best with a number of key tackles, then showed he still needs some work with some lapses of concentration.
Daley Blind – 6: Questions over his attack on the ball for De Bruyne’s goal, but improved as the game went on.
Luke Shaw – 7: Did not offer very much going forward but was very solid defensively and dealt with any danger that came down his flank.
Marouane Fellaini – 6.5: A much better second half from the Belgian who was given more license to attack, showed good glimpses of his heading ability and used his height as an advantage.
Paul Pogba – 5.5: Shifted to a more advanced role in the latter stages but failed to make a major impact. He did try to make things happen with the ball at his feet.
Henrikh Mkhitaryan – 5: The Armenian found little time and space on the ball in a performance well below his standards. Subbed off at the interval.
Wayne Rooney – 5.5: A quiet night for the skipper, who grew frustrated as United continued to trail throughout the match.
Jesse Lingard – 5: Hooked at half-time after a poor opening, where the youngster failed to assert himself into the game with a number of poor touches.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic – 6.5: Limited service throughout the match, but showed true striker’s potency to capitalise on Claudio Bravo’s error.
Substitutes
Ander Herrera – 6: Sat in a deeper midfield role and worked hard going forward. Defensively filled the void left by overlapping fullbacks.
Marcus Rashford – 6.5: Added some much needed flair in the wide areas for United after being bought on at half-time. Made life for Bacary Sagna more difficult.
Anthony Martial – N/A: Not enough time to make an impact
Manchester City
Claudio Bravo – 5: A very nervous debut for the former Barcelona man, made a handling error for the goal and almost cost his side more than once.
Bacary Sagna – 6: A solid performance from the fullback upon his return from injury, had some troubles following the introduction of Rashford.
John Stones – 6.5: Starting to fit in nicely alongside Otamendi, passed the ball well on occasions with some nervy moments. Miscommunicated with Bravo for United’s goal.
Nicolas Otamendi – 7: The real leader at the back for City throughout the match, he was strong in the tackle and did not shirk the issue against Ibrahimovic.
Aleksandar Kolarov – 6: Pushed forward well when linking up well with Nolito. Showed a strong passing ability with a number of cross-field deliveries.
Fernandinho – 6.5: Protected the back four well, not allowing the likes of Rooney and Pogba time and space. Passed the ball well out from the back.
Kevin De Bruyne – 8.5: The clear Man of the Match, from the outset he looked busy on and off the ball. A well-taken goal inside the opening 15 minutes.
David Silva – 6: Did some nice things throughout the match, but was not at his brilliant best. Played the sideshow role to partner De Bruyne.
Raheem Sterling – 6: While he looked dangerous at times, he could not have the impact as previous weeks which saw him taken out on the hour-mark.
Nolito – 6: Looked to cut inside on a number of occasions.
Kelechi Iheanacho – 7: With big shoes to fill he did not let his teammates down, set up the goal for De Bruyne with a glancing header before tapping in from close range.
Substitutes
Fernando – 6: Slotted into defensive midfield as United began to take control of the game and stuck to his task vigorously.
Leroy Sane – 6.5: Provided some good energy after coming on and made a nuisance of himself up against Luke Shaw.
Pablo Zabaleta – N/A: Not enough time to make an impact.
What are your thoughts? Let us know by dropping a comment below via our Facebook comment box. Make sure you follow us on Twitter @Outside90 and like us on Facebook.
