Do the Cityzens aggravate the crisis of the Red Devils?

Since the summer of 2023, Manchester has become the second European city alongside Milan to produce two different Champions League winners. Accordingly, the 190th Manchester derby in history will once again be a high-caliber affair as the Red Devils look to further extricate themselves from their results crisis in front of a home crowd at the Theatre of Dreams. However, Manchester United vs Manchester City betting on the home side to win is not under the best of omens.

Erik ten Hag’s side have won their last two league games in a row and also came close in the Champions League against Copenhagen during the week. Before that, however, there were four defeats among the last six Premier League games (two wins) and two defeats in the premier league, which should be taken into account in the forecast for Manchester United against Manchester City.

Manchester City, meanwhile, marched easily through the Champions League preliminary round with three straight 3-1 wins, but have also dropped something in the Premier League recently. The last two away games at Wolverhampton (1:2) and Arsenal (0:1) were lost. For the first time in three and a half years, the Sky Blues could now lose three Premier League away games in a row.

However, considering that Manchester United have not been overly convincing and have lost five of the last seven Manchester derbies across competitions (two wins), tip 2 makes much more sense in our eyes.

Manchester United – Statistics & current form

Manchester United staggered in the 2022/23 season for long stretches of the first leg. At the latest, however, when Cristiano Ronaldo was then given away in the winter break, who increasingly played no role under Erik ten Hag, the Red Devils were able to catch themselves again.

In the end, the English record champions finished third in the final table and qualified for the UEFA Champions League once again. However, the Red Devils were 14 points behind their city rivals Manchester City, who won the championship in the end.

After a shaky start to the season, three must-win games in a row

This season, Erik ten Hag’s squad would love to play a bigger role in the race for the championship title again. First, however, the opener was also this time in the sand. In the Premier League, four of the first seven league games were lost (three wins).

In addition, there were two consecutive defeats in the Champions League against Bayern (3:4) and Galatasaray (2:3). Recently, however, the Red Devils got their act together again. Winning two Premier League games in a row was also followed by a narrow 1-0 win over Copenhagen in the top flight during the week, with the criticized Maguire scoring the golden goal before the equally criticized keeper Onana saved a penalty in injury time.

The Red Devils have lost their home strength

Despite winning three competitive games in a row, however, the English record champions are still ticked off. Thus, it is not surprising that in Manchester United vs Manchester City the betting odds are clearly against the Red Devils, who struggled especially at home at Old Trafford.

Not only did the three-time Champions League winners (most recently in 2008) always fall behind in their last four Premier League home games in a row, but United have also lost two of their last three games in league play in front of a home crowd (one win). That’s as many home defeats as in the 34 previous league games at the Theatre of Dreams before that combined….

Predicted Manchester United lineup:

Manchester City – statistics & current form

Manchester City has won the Premier League title in five of the last six seasons and also triumphed several times in the two cup competitions. It was only internationally that the knot just wouldn’t burst. In 2021, the Sky Blues were beaten by Chelsea FC in the Champions League final.

This summer, however, everything finally fell into place for the Cityzens, who not only won the league title and the FA Cup, but also the trophy for the first time in the club’s history and brought the big triple home to the English northwest. Now Guardiola’s eleven faces the difficulty of following up on this exceptional success.

Not lost three away games in a row for three and a half years

In the Champions League, nothing was burning. During the week, City celebrated their third 3:1 victory in a row and have thus opened the door to the knockout round wide open. Only in the Premier League is currently “only” second place behind Tottenham on record.

This is due to the last two away games, which were lost at Wolverhampton (1:2) and Arsenal (0:1). If the Sky Blues have ever been vulnerable at all, it has been away from home. Guardiola’s squad suffered only five defeats in the Premier League in the 2023 calendar year. All five have come in away games.

The best defense in the Premier League

Despite this, the betting on the Cityzens to win away at Manchester United against Manchester City is now under a decidedly good star. Not only do the reigning triple winners have a clear lead in the latest head-to-head rankings, but the Sky Blues also travel with the best defense in the Premier League. They have conceded just seven goals in nine league games so far.

In addition, Pep Guardiola’s team finds the double burden of Champions League and Premier League much easier than their city rivals. Of the last eight Manchester derbies played immediately after a Champions League group game between the two teams, City have lost just one (five wins, two draws).

Predicted Manchester City lineup:

Manchester United – Manchester City Direct comparison / H2H balance

Head to head: 78 – 53 – 59

The Manchester derby has taken place a total of 189 times so far and with 78 wins, the Red Devils still lead the head-to-head comparison, although the balance has increasingly shifted towards the Sky Blues recently. City has won five of the last seven duels with United (two defeats). In the Premier League alone, 13 of the last 24 derbies have also gone to the Cityzens (three draws, eight defeats).

Manchester United – Manchester City Tip

On the betting side, Manchester United vs Manchester City odds are swinging in the direction of the visitors, who have lost their last two Premier League away games in a row, but are on five wins from their last seven Manchester derbies across the competition (two defeats). In our analysis, we’ve come across little evidence to suggest against another derby win for the Sky Blues, especially since the Red Devils have also lost two of their last three Premier League home games at Old Trafford.

In their last four Premier League home games at the Theatre of Dreams, United have also always fallen behind, which would be tantamount to an early decision against a settled outfit like the Cityzens. The prediction for an away win for the Sky Blues in the Manchester United vs. Manchester City