Johnny On The Spot: #MINDTHEGAP. 12 points already by Armistice day. The gulf in class was gigantic. From the moment the team sheets were read out this result was never in any doubt. It was merely a case of how many. I did not think it possible, but mid-table Maureen’s Manchester united look more limited than they did 7 months ago. They are a team in regression. Relentless narrow escapes all season belie their aged tactics and have papered over widespread cracks as the side slip further into obscurity.
Backed by a legion of scribes, pundits and deluded supporters entrenched in the past, the strategy is a dated defence first anti-football set up reliant on physicality and late stage utilised pace up front in the hope that an opposition dominant in possession will beat themselves. Put simply, an imperious City not only had to exorcise the ghost of last April’s travesty of a result, they had to succeed where across their last 7 games, Valencia, Juve x2, Newcastle, Chelsea, Everton and Bournemouth had all failed to see the rags off when in total control.
I swear no other side in the Premier League approaches games like this. It is utterly predictable but also very difficult to deal with. But today, this was a time for champions and brilliant game management. As he deployed his well drilled centurions earlier this season, Pep Guardiola hooked the Silver Fox Aguero who is on a run of 18 goals in his last 14 league home games for Ilkay Lampard who off the back of absolute midfield control sealed this embarrassingly one sided Manchester derby superbly.
All United and their 5 wins from the last 17 league derbies across 9 seasons have to bank from this latest no show was a route one penalty won by the Belgian Heskey after another Ederson emergence from boredom. The icing on the Stretford cake of humiliation was to see our very own Stockport Iniesta, Phil Foden coming on to join the party. In the words of the legendary Walter Smith, TAKE IT. The panicked appointment by footballing novices of “all about me” Mourinho has horribly backfired. – Manchester united, exiting the city walls with your record breaking signings integral to a pathetic multi-million pounds doomed effort at catching City up, where do you go from here?
The Etihad Stadium
FA Premier League
Referee: Anthony Taylor of Wythenshawe
Manchester City | Manchester United | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Silva (12'), Agüero (48'), Gündogan (86') | Martial (58' pen) | ||||||
31 Ederson | 1 David De Gea | ||||||
2 Kyle Walker | 18 Ashley Young | ||||||
5 John Stones | 12 Chris Smalling | ||||||
14 Aymeric Laporte | 2 Victor Lindelöf | ||||||
22 Benjamin Mendy | 23 Luke Shaw | ||||||
20 Bernardo Silva | 21 Ander Herrera | Mata 73' | |||||
25 Fernandinho | 31 Nemanja Matic | ||||||
21 David Silva | Foden 90+2' | 27 Marouane Fellaini | |||||
26 Riyad Mahrez | Sané 62' | 14 Jesse Lingard | Lukaku 57' | ||||
10 Sergio Agüero | Gündogan 75' | 10 Marcus Rashford | Sánchez 73' | ||||
7 Raheem Sterling | 11 Anthony Martial | ||||||
Substitutes |
|||||||
4 Vincent Kompany | 4 Phil Jones | ||||||
8 Ilkay Gündogan | 7 Alexis Sánchez | ||||||
18 Fabian Delph | 8 Jaun Mata | ||||||
19 Leroy Sané | 9 Romelu Lukaku | ||||||
33 Gabriel Jesus | 17 Fred | ||||||
47 Philip Foden | 22 Sergio Romero | ||||||
49 Aro Muric | 36 Matteo Darmian |
Game Statistics |
||
20 | Goal attempts | 6 |
5 | On Target | 1 |
5 | Corners | 1 |
12 | Fouls | 12 |
1 | Yellow Cards | 1 |
0 | Red Cards | 0 |
70 | % | 30 |