Manchester Derby: City Injury Woes vs United’s Uncertain Future
by Geoffrey Ejiga | by Geoffrey Ejiga
Manchester City Endure Their Worst Season Start of The Decade
It promises to be a tight affair when Manchester City lock horns with Manchester United tomorrow. Pep Guardiola’s men find themselves in murky waters. Despite thrashing Wolves 4 - 0 on opening day, the Citizens have fallen way down to 13th after consecutive losses to Brighton and Tottenham, defying most football predictions.
Taking 3 points in the first 3 games is Guardiola’s worst-ever start to a domestic campaign. This is a significant concern because the last time a club lost two of its first three EPL matches and still went on to lift the title was all the way back in 1992-93, when, ironically, Sir Ferguson commanded Manchester United to the inaugural Premier League title.
But it’s a different time, and this Manchester City is a different beast, plus their opponents are faring much worse than they are. However, don’t be fooled into thinking it should be an easy one for the Citizens. Amorin has yet to lose against Pep, taking a win and a draw from the Spaniard last season, and thrashing Manchester City 4-1 with Sporting CP at the start of the previous season.
Manchester United Hoping To Repeat Derby Upset
Manchester United are coming into the derby with mixed form. Fresh off a defeat to division 4 side Grimsby Town, the Reds earned their first win of the campaign against Burnley thanks to a 97th-minute penalty from Bruno Fernandes. This narrow triumph marked Ruben Amorim’s eighth win from 30 games in charge, four of which have come against newly promoted teams.
With the best betting odds in City's favor, United’s erratic form will be put to the test if they want all three points. Although Manchester City have emerged as winners in 5 of the last 8 H2H matches, the Citizens only managed to take one point from United last season.
This builds upon the recent trend that, despite how poorly United are playing, the Red Devils seem to reserve their best performances for the noisy neighbours. In fact, Manchester United is responsible for a quarter of Pep Guardiola’s 16 home defeats as a City manager.
Guardiola and Amorim Loses Key Names To Early-Season Injuries
As for team news, these are all the City and United players out due to injury.
Manchester City
Defense: Rico Lewis, Rayan Ait-Nouri, Josko Gvardiol, Abdulkodir Khusanov, John Stones, Marcus Bettinelli
Midfield: Mateo Kovacic, Rayan Chekri, Nico O’Reilly
Attack: Savinho, Omar Marmoush
Manchester United
Defense: Diogo Dalot, Lisandro Martinez
Midfield: Mason Mount
Attack: Matheus Cunha
How To Watch City vs United Manchester Derby 2025/26
Here’s all you need to know about the City vs United’s match on Sunday:
- Date: Sunday 14 September 2025
- Time: 16:30 BST
- Venue: Etihad Stadium
- Referee: Anthony Taylor
