The 196th Manchester derby ended scoreless at a sun-drenched Old Trafford, as United and City could not be separated.
Ruben Amorim’s men entered the game languishing in 14th position in the Premier League after Tottenham’s win over Southampton. At the same time, Pep Guardiola’s side sat in 5th, with Champions League qualification still a distinct possibility for the visitors.
The Citizens had more possession throughout the clash, but United, backed by a raucous home crowd, pushed harder for a breakthrough.
In the end, a draw was a fair result as both sides cancelled each other out, with neither team producing enough quality in the final third to secure a winning goal.
With the spoils shared at Old Trafford, here are our five talking points from Sunday’s cagey encounter.
Lack of cutting-edge is a concern for Manchester United
It was the second successive game without a goal for Manchester United, following up Tuesday’s 1-0 defeat at Nottingham Forest with another blank on Sunday evening.
The Red Devils huffed and puffed but ultimately failed to breach the visitors’ back-line, with Joshua Zirkzee and Manuel Ugarte going closest to finding the net in the second half.
Inevitably, Amorim will be concerned about his side’s recent lack of goals, as they continue to struggle to make a major impact in the final third of the field.
Hopefully, the Reds can rediscover their scoring prowess on Thursday just in time for their crunch clash with Lyon in the Europa League quarter-finals.
Yoro excels in the derby
With Manchester United playing a low block for the majority of the game, the back three saw plenty of action.
Teenage defender Leny Yoro produced a quietly effective display and continues to look more and more settled in M16.
The former Lille prodigy appeared comfortable playing out from the back and played some impressive diagonal passes, as well as using his athleticism to dribble out and progress the ball forward.
With Erling Haaland missing out through injury, it was perhaps an easier day than anticipated for Yoro and Co., and the Frenchman will now look to build on this recent good form.
Garnacho and Dorgu display an improved connection
With Alejandro Garnacho and Patrick Dorgu failing to strike up a strong rapport down the left-hand flank for United thus far, Amorim decided to stick with the pair for Sunday’s meeting with City.
The duo offered a much improved showing at Old Trafford, though, with both 20-year-old wide men linking up more throughout.
While it was far from perfect, it was still encouraging to see the youngsters using one another to good effect more often, whilst posing plenty of problems for the away side.
Hopefully, they can continue to work together and build a potent partnership on that left wing.
Noussair Mazraoui is Mr. Consistent
Nous Mazraoui put in yet another brilliant performance for United on the right side of a back-three against the Sky Blues.
The man from Morocco has been a rock of consistency this season since joining from Bayern Munich in the summer for what now looks like a bargain fee of £12 million.
Week after week, the former Ajax defender displays high levels of performance, proving to be a versatile asset by filling in at several different roles.
United could do with recruiting more players of the personality and class of Mazraoui.
What is Bruno Fernandes’ best role at Manchester United?
Under compatriot Ruben Amorim, Fernandes has started to thrive in a deeper midfield position alongside the likes of Ugarte or Casemiro.
The former Sporting man won March’s Premier League Player of the Month award following his dominant displays in the engine room.
However, the Portuguese playmaker was pushed further forward into a more familiar attacking role against City, acting as United’s sole creator, with Ugarte and Casemiro patrolling in the pivot.
The hosts seemed to lack control for the majority of proceedings until Fernandes dropped deep just after 70 minutes to allow Mason Mount to slot into one of the attacking midfield positions.
Truthfully, the skippers’ influence in the centre was felt almost immediately, with his range of passing and raking diagonal balls a joy to behold.
Despite being named Player of the Match at the weekend, there is still an interesting debate to be had about where Fernandes is at his best for the club in this system.
How do you feel following the latest instalment of the Derby, and are you confident in a prosperous future for Manchester United under Ruben Amorim?
Let us know in the comments or across our social channels.
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