Manchester City cruised to a 4-1 victory over Manchester United in a crucial derby game at the Etihad last weekend. We make a detailed analysis of the match which will help you understand the way the game flowed. The match overview is that the Red Devils began with a lot of heart. Jadon Sancho cancelled out an early Kevin de Bruyne goal.
However, a second strike by the Belgian, as well as a Riyad Mahrez brace in the second half capped off a comprehensive performance by Pep Guardiola’s men. The result means United drop out of the top-4, behind Arsenal who also have played 3 games less. City remain on top of the Premier League table, 6 points ahead of Liverpool who have a game in hand.
Starting Line-Ups:
Pep Guardiola named an aggressive side, with all of Jack Grealish, Phil Foden, Mahrez, De Bruyne and Bernando Silva in the starting line-up. The Citizens were only missing Ruben Dias to an injury.
Rangnick had his own set of injury issues to contend with. The absence of Cristiano Ronaldo and Edinson Cavani meant Bruno Fernandes started in an unfamiliar “false-9” role. Raphael Varane and Luke Shaw also missed out after testing positive for Covid.
First Half:
United began the game strongly. The Red Devils looked comfortable in possession against City’s press. City often took up a 4-4-2 shape without the ball. Foden and De Bruyne pressed as centre-forwards while Bernardo Silva joined Rodri in a makeshift double pivot. United retained their full-backs deeper. Pogba often dropped deeper to create a 3-man midfield shape. This worked beautifully for Rangnick.
Fred and Pogba’s positioning meant that Rodri or Bernardo Silva were unable to jump and cover McTominay. The full-backs were also well involved in the deeper areas, while the wingers remained wide to occupy City’s full-backs. Higher up the field, United maintained a conservative shape. The full-backs remained relatively deeper, as did McTominay.
This gave greater positional freedom to Pogba, Bruno and Fred to swap positions and utilise space. Sancho and Elanga also looked to continuously attack the opposition goal from wider areas.
For most parts of the game, the United were content in letting Manchester City hold the ball, and try to exploit opportunities on the break. The visitors looked to press in a 4-2-3-1 shape higher up the field. Pogba tracked Rodri while Fernandes pressed the back-line. This forced the home team to use the wide areas for build-up.
In the middle of the field, the Red Devils reverted to a 4-2-2-2. Bruno and Pogba acted as dual centre-forwards, cutting off build-up centrally. The Citizens were relegated to the left-wing largely. However, this didn’t prove to be an issue for Guardiola’s men.
Five minutes in, The Premier League leaders managed to locate some space on the flank. A combination of some excellent play by Bernardo Silva, and weak defending by Telles, Wan-Bissaka and McTominay allowed De Bruyne to prod in a cross from close range.
United Concentrated On Controlling The Game
The Red Devils responded positively to the setback. Manchester United allowed City to control possession, but they themselves controlled the game. This was possible because Rangnick’s men controlled transitions well.
A solid defensive structure continuously forced the CItizens wide, and Guardiola’s men resorted to long-balls to find space. United were good at winning second balls, which immediately allowed them to attack. Pogba was magnificent in holding up play from the central positions. This allowed some excellent inter-plays between the front-five, which caused City’s defence several problems.
Another interesting subplot showed up when the visitors were in their attacking transitions. Even in previous games, Pogba and Fernandes have often dropped wider to receive the ball. The same rotations proved much more fruitful higher up the field.
United were able to create 2v1 situations in the wide areas more often. This allowed Pogba to absorb pressure from City’s full-back, and find the winger’s run.
United managed to equalise in the 22nd minute. Wan-Bissaka regained possession deep in the defensive half and picked out Pogba. The Frenchman located Sancho with a superb through ball, allowing the former Dortmund winger to take a couple of touches to cut in and score.
Guardiola Responds To United’s Equaliser
The goal revitalized City. Guardiola made a few tactical adjustments to nullify Rangnick’s plan. Off the ball, City adjusted into a 4-1-2-3 shape. The centre-backs and De Gea were not pressed much, but the defending champions were able to execute a man-marking scheme all over the rest of the field. United’s centre-backs were hesitant to drive the ball forward themselves and instead resorted to long balls which proved unsuccessful.
In possession, the centre-backs moved into much deeper positions. This often attracted pressure from United’s front-line, creating spaces between the first two lines of the press. Guardiola pushed De Bruyne and Bernardo Silva into more advanced positions. This forced the United double-pivot into a dilemma:
- If Fred and McTominay held their positions, City were able to create superiorities in the wide areas to progress.
- If Fred and McTominay tracked their men, it opened up space for Foden to drop deeper and collect possession.
Rangnick Counters Defensively
Rangnick responded by allowing Lindelof to track Foden’s movements deeper. However, this created as many problems as solutions. The Swedish centre-back jumping allowed space for runners from deep areas, be it Jack Grealish or Bernardo Silva.
This, in turn, forced the United back-line to move even narrower. Grealish was offered more space to receive the ball and looked to create something every time the ball was at his feet.
Grealish had a bright game. The former Aston Villa man was tidy in circulating possession. His positioning was also excellent as he often found space on the edge of the box to receive the ball and find the runners.
City concentrated their play down the left-flank for most of the game. The triangle of Grealish, Bernardo and Cancelo offered Guardiola a lot of flexibility. Their positional rotations made marking difficult for United.
The Red Devils adjusted into a 4-3-3 of sorts. Pogba pressed down the right, while Elanga was drawn deeper defensively. City saw off the rest of the first half rather leisurely. The defending champions had 10 shots to United’s 5. Rangnick had set his side up perfectly in the first period but failed to innovate further as Guardiola tweaked his tactics.
Second Half:
The second half saw complete one-way traffic. Manchester City completely dominated proceedings and barely allowed Manchester United breathing room. Guardiola continued to modify his side’s set-up. In the build-up phase, Kyle Walker was deployed as a third centre-back. Bernardo Silva was also dropped into the double pivot role more in the 2nd half. This allowed Rodri to find space more regularly.
The 3-2 shape dragged Elanga and Sancho into narrower positions. This allowed De Bruyne and Cancelo to access acres of space in the wide areas.
In case United’s wingers decided to remain wide, Rodri was free to receive the ball on the turn.
Manchester City could alternatively utilise a flat-5 as the full-backs inverted, which completely pinned the defensive line for United. Bernardo, Foden and De Bruyne would drop deeper to collect the ball in space and recycle possession. 
Rodri and Foden acted as catalysts between the lines. The Spaniard was crucial in breaking United’s first line of press, while the Englishman helped overcome United’s second line.
Rangnick attempted to switch Sancho and Elanga. The motive behind the wing-swap seemed obvious: to allow Sancho to exploit the space created out wide when Cancelo inverted or overlapped. However, this proved to be in vain, as City suffocated Manchester United in build-ups, and the wingers were barely accessible.
De Gea’s Distribution Shortcomings Exploited:
Another major hindrance to United’s build-up was David de Gea. City identified the Spaniard as United’s weak link and set some excellent pressing traps to outwit United’s defence.
The United shot-stopper did not attempt line-breaking passes, so Manchester City forced the Spanish keeper to play the ball to his defenders. A systematic side-overload allowed Guardiola’s men to quickly regain possessions and attack De Gea’s goal.
De Gea, in all fairness, put out several fires he started. The former Atletico Madrid man affected six saves, and the score-line could have been far more grimmer if not for his efforts.
Read More:
- Juventus Working on a Huge Deal to Bring Back Paul Pogba as United Weigh Alternatives
- Manchester United Player Ratings vs City: Lindelof And Maguire The Biggest Disappointments as United Meekly Surrender Against City
- Analyzing Jadon Sancho’s Role and Impact at United This Season And What Lies Ahead
City scored twice in the second half, courtesy of Mahrez. The Algerian brilliantly guided in De Bruyne’s corner in the 68th minute to put some daylight between the teams. In stoppage time, Mahrez added gloss to the score-line, by remaining onside to finish off a sweeping move. The attack began when City won possession from a poor De Gea clearance.
Conclusion:
The final whistle brought huge cheer around the Etihad. The win was a massive result in City’s conquest for a 4th Premier League title in 5 years. United, meanwhile, continue to sink deeper. Rangnick set up a brilliant plan that the Red Devils executed fantastically in the first half.
However, the German manager failed to keep up with Guardiola’s repeated masterstrokes, as City appeared a very different side at the end of the game, to the one at kick-off. Back to the drawing board to salvage a quickly diminishing top-4 dream.
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