The Etihad is about to host to the 197th Manchester derby this weekend with each Metropolis and United enduring detached begins this season. BBC Sport explores some key themes as this historic rivalry continues.
Three factors from a potential 9 represents Pep Guardiola’s worst begin to any league season, whereas 21 years have handed since Manchester Metropolis had been final overwhelmed in two of their opening three Premier League matches.
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The earlier time Metropolis misplaced three of their first 4 top-flight video games was in 1995-96 underneath Alan Ball. That marketing campaign resulted in relegation and whereas that’s nearly definitely not going to occur to this facet, defeat right here may see them fall 9 factors behind the early pacesetters
Guardiola will once more look to the in-form Erling Haaland to fireplace his facet to victory. The 25-year-old scored a hat-trick in his first Manchester derby in 2022 and warmed up for this one by netting 5 instances in Norway’s 11-1 victory over Moldova.
It was the third five-goal haul of Haaland’s senior profession and he has now scored 48 worldwide objectives in 45 caps. Metropolis’s quantity 9 would often dominate the headlines given the week he has had, however many of the focus throughout the build-up is more likely to be on the membership’s new quantity 99.
Gianluigi Donnarumma may change into the eighth Metropolis participant to make their Premier League bow in a Manchester derby and the third goalkeeper after Andreas Isaksson in 2006 and Claudio Bravo in 2016. Neither saved a clear sheet, though Isaksson did seem as a half-time substitute for Nicky Weaver.
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5 of the earlier seven debutants ended up on the successful facet, two discovered the online and one – Mikhail Kavelashvili – is now the president of Georgia.
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Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim has elected to stay with Altay Bayindir as his primary goalkeeper regardless of Senne Lammens arriving from Royal Antwerp for £18m on deadline day.
The Belgian should wait a bit of longer for his United debut however is more likely to be on the bench on Sunday after Andre Onana’s mortgage transfer to Turkish facet Trabzonspor.
Bayindir has didn’t impress in his transient spell as Manchester United’s first selection – bar his FA Cup penalty heroics at final season – and he’s one in all simply three keepers to make an error resulting in a purpose this time period.
[BBC]
No matter who performs in purpose, United might be buoyed by the actual fact they’re but to lose to their Manchester rivals underneath Amorim, with a 2-1 victory on the Etihad final season adopted by a goalless draw at Outdated Trafford in April.
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You can too pay attention to five Dwell Premier League commentaries on most sensible audio system. Simply say “ask BBC Sounds to play Manchester Metropolis v Manchester United”.