Pellegrini delights in dominant derby triumph

Manuel Pellegrini hailed the comprehensive nature of his side’s derby day victory.

A Sergio Aguero brace, as well as strikes from Samir Nasri and Yaya Toure helped the Blues to a memorable 4-1 triumph over Manchester United.

Although it’s still early in the season, City’s Chilean boss believes his side may have landed a significant psychological blow in the title race.

“It was a very important result, normally you don’t expect to win 4-1 against Manchester United but the most important thing was the way we played - I am very happy,” Pellegrini said in the post-match press conference.

“Normally derbies are more equal but today we had a very good day and that allowed us to have superiority against Manchester United this afternoon.

“Winning the way we won today will give us a lot of confidence.


“I would be very happy if we win all of the games 4-1 but we must improve every game. Not every game is the same, we are just starting in another way to play and I hope we will improve every day.

“Always winning against Manchester United and the way we won could have an important impact.
For the best part of an hour, City were rampant and looked capable of cutting open their rivals with each incisive attack.

There was a time in the match at 4-0 when an annihilation looked on the cards but Pellegrini was far from disappointed that his team failed to improve on the four-goal advantage they gained as early as the 50th minute.
“I’m not disappointed,” he declared, “I think we played a little bit quickly in the second half, I think we tried to play box to box which wasn’t the way to play in those circumstances.

“We had so much space and we are always trying to tell players to play independently of the score but I think that would have been useful for us in the last forty minutes.

“We have to play United again in three months but until then, the fans will enjoy that result. For the team, winning the way we did today will give us a lot of confidence.
The 60-year old is a veteran of Spanish El Clasicos and Argentine Superclasicos and he admitted that he enjoyed his first taste of the Manchester derby, although he was reluctant to compare it to what he’s been through before.

“It’s a very important derby – luckily for me I played a lot of them in Argentine, Chile, Spain – I don’t like to compare them. It was very important, I enjoyed it,” he reflected after the match.
Pellegrini’s counterpart David Moyes was also experiencing his first Manchester derby.


The Scotsman admitted that the home side deserved their victory and bemoaned the slow start his team made to the match.

“We didn’t’ start the game well,” Moyes stated.
“As the half wore on I thought we gained a bit more control but then they scored a second goal before half-time.

“It was one game and there’s plenty of them to come and there’s plenty of time to go.

“We were a yard behind them, we never got the pitch of the game which was disappointing. We had a good result to build on in midweek but we never quite got to grips with this task.

“I thought Wayne Rooney was possibly the best player on the pitch today – he didn’t deserve to be on the losing team.”

Heavier training for Citizens...City 4 - United 1

Much will be made of the fact Manchester United were missing Robin van Persie through injury during Sunday's sensational derby humiliation at the hands of Manchester City but that would be an insult to the outstanding performance of the home team at the Etihad Stadium.From the defensive organisation of fit-again captain Vincent Kompany, to the midfield purpose and goalscoring of Yaya Toure and Samir Nasri, along with the finishing of Sergio Aguero - Manuel Pellegrini's City were superb in their manager's derby debut.


United, in contrast, were decimated and have now taken just seven points from their opening five Premier League games. It was always going to be a tough start when also hosting Chelsea and a trip to Liverpool but the pressure is unquestionably on David Moyes after his painful own first taste of the derby.


Here, Peter Fraser uses Opta statistics to pick apart City's crushing 4-1 victory and looks at what went wrong for an annihilated United in the biggest setback so far of the defending champions' post-Sir Alex Ferguson era.Van Persie was missing from the United squad for the eagerly anticipated derby in what was a huge blow for the visitors at the Etihad. The prolific Dutchman's name was conspicuous by its absence due to a groin injury as the teams were announced, with his place being taken by Danny Welbeck. Van Persie was not even among the substitutes while Ashley Young was also included in the side for Shinji Kagawa.City made just one change from the side who launched their Champions League campaign with victory over Viktoria Plzen in midweek, with striker Alvaro Negredo replacing Edin Dzeko. That meant captain Kompany kept his place having only returned from injury in the European win last Tuesday.City had a clear intent to not let United settle into the game and they were full of intensity from kick-off. They enjoyed a 70.6 per cent dominance of possession in the opening 15 minutes and pushed United deep into their own territory while at the same time focusing their attacks on the left-hand side.This exact tactic led to Aguero's opening goal, which had manager Pellegrini punching the air in delight on the touchline. Antonio Valencia was presumably selected by United for his work ethic and defensive commitment on the right of United's attacking players. But he switched off in the 16th minute to let Aleksandar Kolarov overlap Nasri and cross for Aguero to supply a sublime, volleyed finish.City continued to enjoy themselves with a majority share of possession and they produced nine shots in the opening quarter of the game, with United failing to manage one. United undoubtedly caused themselves problems throughout their ineffective performance but likewise the purpose and power of City was immense.Man of the match Yaya Toure and the rejuvenated Nasri, who was also superb in the midweek win over Plzen, were significant factors in City's excellent first half. Toure touched the ball 43 times, won all of his two duels and played 38 passes, the most of any player on the pitch, at a pass success rate of 86.8%. He also scored City's second goal on the stroke of half-time after a defensive lapse from Marouane Fellaini, who lost his man. Likewise, Nasri touched the ball 46 times, which was the most of any man on either side in the first half.


For United, although they saw an increase in possession in the 10 minutes before half-time - with the possession stats at the break reading only a 54.7% majority for City - there were familiar signs from their season. They had the ball in central areas but Michael Carrick and Fellaini were failing to dictate play. Carrick won possession (10) and had more touches (95) than any other player over the course of the game. But as Sky Sports' Gary Neville identified in co-commentary, there were "too many straight passes". Fellaini was supposed to improve this area after taking Tom Cleverley's place in the team but there was little impact against City.Carrick and Fellaini were failing to play the ball at any angles which would test City's line of defence and this in turn allowed the home side to keep their shape and mean Wayne Rooney, who looked a frustrated figure, had to drop deep in search of the ball. Young was also guilty of a dire performance, with only eight successful passes before half-time.

Sky Sports' Niall Quinn said at the interval: "Manchester City have been outstanding in all departments. Matching up man-to-man, they have totally dominated Manchester United. The intricacy of their play and the spirit and desire at the back to win tackles has been lovely to watch at times. They deservedly lead 2-0."United were, of course, missing Van Persie but Welbeck was having to work off scraps in place of the influential Dutchman as the lone striker. It is difficult to imagine whether Van Persie would have been able to do any better. Welbeck touched the ball just 15 times in the first half, which was the same as City goalkeeper Joe Hart and that provided a microcosm of the game.Little changed immediately after half-time, when City made it 3-0 in a goal which was spookily similar to the first, with Valencia guilty of allowing Kolarov to overlap with a decoy run. Nasri had the room to cross for Negredo who in turn centred the ball for Aguero to finish with another volley after running off the back of Fellaini. It could be argued deadline-day signing Fellaini is not yet up to speed with United's defensive tactics unlike City's summer signings, who all arrived early in the window.

If midfield effectiveness had been a boxing contest, the United coaching staff would surely have thrown in the towel given the way their side were being pulled apart. Again United's midfield was non-existent as City made it 4-0 in the 50th minute. Nasri scored the goal but Kompany took the credit after winning the ball on the edge of his box and feeding it to Jesus Navas before running the length of the pitch to create the space in United's box.It was a reflection of Kompany's overall performance. The Belgian may have only just returned from injury but he hardly gave Rooney or Welbeck a sniff of the ball. At the final whistle, Kompany had won five of his six duels, made 12 clearances - four times more than his closest team-mate - and had gained possession on nine occasions.

Moyes responded to going 4-0 down by sending on Cleverley in place of the hugely ineffective Young. The poor performance of Young can also be attributed to the fact he was facing Pablo Zabaleta, who underlined his reputation as the best right-back in the division after a superb 10 tackles overall, which was more than double any other player on the pitch.But the introduction of Cleverley made little impact. With three in central midfield, United saw a bit more of the ball. However, the key to City's success were the influential performances throughout their team, with Kompany, Toure, Nasri and Aguero, who was typically clinical with two goals from his only two shots in the game, all absolutely superb.

Rooney would at least give United, who have another tough match on Wednesday when Liverpool visit Old Trafford in the Capital One Cup, something to cheer with less than five minutes of normal time remaining when his wonderful, curling free-kick was out of reach of Hart. The goal was Rooney's 11th in a Manchester derby to mean he is now the highest scorer in the fixture's history. But landmarks and consolations will mean little to Moyes as he worries about any potential lasting hangover among his squad from their derby embarrassment.

Manchester derby head to head

Manuel Pellegrini and David Moyes are making their debuts in a Manchester derby on Sunday and hoping their attacking threats outnumber the defensive weaknesses.

MANCHESTER CITY

Manager: Manuel Pellegrini

Like his opposite number, making his debut in a Manchester derby, though David Moyes has at least experienced the occasion in the past as a spectator. After four games it is fair to say that those who tipped Manchester City to run away with this season's title have been revising their expectations slightly downwards, for only the opening game was truly impressive and the manner of the unexpected defeat at Cardiff downright worrying. Courtesy of a much kinder Champions League group than City have been used to Pellegrini is up and running in Europe, though there is still uncertainty over his best team, particularly at the front end. On the positive side, there is plenty of room for improvement.

Defence

The meanest in the Premier League last season, leaking 34 goals, but still inexplicably flimsy whenever Vincent Kompany goes missing. Fortunately, the reliable Belgian is back from injury now, so City should not have too many defensive worries as long as Joe Hart can put his recent wobbles behind him. Joleon Lescott was so jittery in the last home match that Pellegrini paired Javi García with Matija Nastasic at centre-back for the visit to Stoke, where City were quite lucky to come away with a point, but with Kompany fit again the only area of doubt is left-back, where Gaël Clichy has been injured and Aleksandar Kolarov erratic.

Midfield

Yaya Touré is still the go-to man, both in terms of providing the drive from deep positions and, increasingly, getting among the goals. He has two in the league this season, although splendid as his late free-kick against Hull City in the last home match was, it put a flattering gloss on a very ordinary performance by his high standards. He was flat that day, and so were City, whereas when Touré is dominant in midfield his side are at their best. He has played every minute of every league game this season, making a total of 347 passes with an accuracy of more than 90%. City now have Fernandinho anchoring the midfield, and if the latest upgrade on Nigel de Jong has made a quiet start in England, at least Touré still has the attacking freedom he desires.

Attack

Still a work in progress, with Alvaro Negredo resembling Edin Dzeko, Jesús Navas establishing himself and Stevan Jovetic wondering where he will fit in. The main attacking threats are still the ones from the title-winning season, David Silva and Sergio Agüero, though a lack of goals became a worry last season, and Carlos Tevez has departed since then. While City are not quite as blunt up front as Chelsea, they sometimes suffer from a similar lack of directness in attack, and often need someone to take charge. That said, as United know very well, there are days when everything clicks and big scores can be run up. Even Dzeko can be devastating on his day.

MANCHESTER UNITED

Manager: David Moyes

The new Manchester United manager is nearing the end of a start so tough he complained about it, and with a draw at home to Chelsea and defeat at Anfield the derby result will determine whether or not his side will come out on the credit side of the ledger. A poor performance could undermine players' and supporters' confidence, though United managed to look a lot like their old selves in the Champions League in midweek against Bayer Leverkusen, and the club's management deserves recognition for sticking to their guns and their principles in the crisis Wayne Rooney tried to force. If that was the biggest test of all for Moyes he has come through it, and Rooney appears to be thriving on the humble pie diet.

Defence

Not at its most convincing in conceding two goals to a fairly unimpressive Bayer Leverkusen in midweek, though the second one of those was after Moyes had made a few substitutions with his side 4-1 up. Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic remain the first-choice centre-half pairing for occasions when experience and mental toughness are called for, though along with Patrice Evra they are not as nimble as they used to be and could be vulnerable to pace. City have real pace in Navas, though Pellegrini has also been sticking with a big fella up front in either Dzeko or Negredo, and United will be happy to deal with crosses.

Midfield

Eyebrows were raised at Moyes's acquisition of Marouane Fellaini from Everton and his somewhat lame excuse for paying £4m over the odds for the combative midfielder. The £27.5m capture has been rather more convincing since he turned up, slotting into a defensive role that allows him to break up opposing attacks while still moving forward for the occasional shot. He does not look out of place playing for United, has deceptively good control for a tall player, and his solidity alongside Michael Carrick allows the wide players in the side to push further up the field. Despite fewer minutes on the pitch he has made more tackles in league matches this season than Touré, though some of those were for Everton.

Attack

Now that Rooney appears content playing alongside Robin van Persie and even Sir Alex Ferguson has given his blessing to the partnership, United should cause problems for most defences. Makes you wonder what all the fuss was about really; had Ferguson played them in tandem against Real Madrid last season we might have been spared a summer of angst. Yet it was not just Rooney benched for that game, Shinji Kagawa was also left out. It was Danny Welbeck who played behind Van Persie, and United were doing pretty well until Nani's dismissal. Moyes has plenty of attacking options – he just needs time to find out what works best.

Manchester City v Manchester United: Squad sheets

For the 166th Manchester derby United arrive at the Etihad Stadium with the same tally of points as City. While this indicates stuttering domestic form, Tuesday evening's Champions League group games provided confidence boosts for both teams, with Manuel Pellegrini's side winning 3-0 and David Moyes's 4-2. The Scot can be content with the way Wayne Rooney has started the campaign – three goals and a fresh focus – while his Chilean counterpart will be pleased at how his first-choice strikers, Sergio Agüero and Edin Dzeko, each scored on Tuesday. The cliche states that form is out the window for this occasion so picking a winner is foolish but there is sure to be incident.

Kick-off Sunday 4pm

Venue Etihad Stadium

Last season Man City 2 Man Utd 3

Referee H Webb

This season G4, Y9, R0, 2.3 cards per game

Odds H 5-4 A 13-5 D 12-5



Manchester City

Subs from Pantilimon, Wright, García, Lescott, Jovetic, Negredo, Richards, Rodwell, Nasri, Clichy, Milner, Guidetti

Doubtful Clichy (thigh), Richards (hamstring), Silva (thigh)

Injured Demichelis (knee, 26 Oct)

Suspended None

Form DWLWLW

Discipline Y5 R0

Leading scorer Negredo, Touré 2

Subs from Lindegaard, Buttner, Giggs, F da Silva, Anderson, Zaha, Januzaj, Evans, Cleverley, Hernández, Young, Nani, Welbeck, Varela

Doubtful Welbeck (knee)

Injured Jones (ankle, 28 Sep), R da Silva (hamstring, 5 Oct), Fletcher (bowel, unknown)

Suspended None

Form WLDWDW

Discipline Y8 R0

Leading scorer Van Persie 3

Manchester City's Joe Hart calls for calm before Manchester United

Joe Hart has appealed for calm ahead of Sunday's Manchester derby following incidents that marred last season's corresponding fixture in December which included Rio Ferdinand being struck by a coin and a home fan invading the pitch.

Ferdinand was hit as he celebrated Manchester United's late winner and Hart had to intercept the supporter who ran on to the Etihad Stadium turf to try and reach the central defender.

"There were incidents last year which no one wants to see repeated," said the City goalkeeper. "The eyes of the world will be on this game as usual, and I'm confident our supporters will do the club proud. Our fans are the best in the world and we want you to show your passion for the club, but in the right way."

In the wake of last year's events nine people were charged, and chester police have heightened their normal security procedures by instigating patrols to make sure no unsavoury graffiti can be daubed near the stadium after inflammatory messages were found in recent seasons.

Some of this cited the Munich air disaster of 1958, in which eight United players died, while other instances featured abuse directed at Marc-Vivien Foé, the former City midfielder who died while playing for Cameroon in 2003.

On Sunday sniffer dogs will be deployed to search out flares, after some were thrown last year, and there is also a move to try to prevent illegal substances being taken at the game. Officers will be issued with protective eyewear after violence broke out last December, with supporters also being filmed in the wake of goals or any other pivotal incidents to monitor behaviour.

On the concourses used solely by United fans on Sunday, DVDs of last season's triumphant title challenge will be shown rather than images of goals scored by City players to try to maintain an acceptable atmosphere.

Hart said: "The derby is one of the most anticipated and exciting games in world football. As players, we are all looking forward to Sunday, and we know that the fans will be too. The home support is so important for us, and I know they will be like an extra man for the team on the day. As always, we need our fans in full voice, but we also need them to respect the occasion. We want everyone to enjoy the game but be sensible too."

Ferdinand was left bleeding after being hit by the coin following the late Robin van Persie free-kick that gave United a 3-2 win, with Wayne Rooney also having objects thrown at him.

City apologised to Ferdinand immediately following the game, with a club spokesperson saying: "We apologise to Rio. We condemn the actions of the individual concerned. We are reviewing the CCTV with the police and our normal security. We will support the police with any investigation and hopefully identify the person as soon as possible."

Paul Scholes is now ready to return to an active role with United after his retirement, with the midfielder yet to decide on his precise job. Nicky Butt, who is in charge of the Under-19 team, had Scholes alongside him for Tuesday's 4-3 win over Bayer Leverkusen in the Uefa Youth League.

"Scholesy has obviously had his break with his family and had a bit of a holiday," Butt said. "He's finished [playing] football now but, with someone like Scholesy, it's important United keep him in around the club in whatever capacity he feels he wants to be in. Whether it be coaching my age-group, Warren Joyce's age-group or Paul McGuinness's youth team; or even the commercial side or scouting, we don't know yet.

"He doesn't really seem to know what his niche is going to be but he's interested in coaching and knows he's got a lot of experience to pass on to the young lads. To have him here was great and we just want to have him around the club. It's important for us all that he's available around the club for whatever he wants to do and so that's where we are at the moment."

Kompany: we don't need to fear Bayern

Vincent Kompany claims there is no reason to fear Bayern Munich when the European champions put Manchester City’s Champions League credentials to the test at the Etihad Stadium next month.  Having ended their two-year wait for a group stage victory with a 3-0 win against Viktoria Plzen in the Czech Republic on Tuesday, City will face Bayern in the knowledge that another three points will give them control of Group D.

Despite City’s unimpressive Champions League record, that has seen them exit at the group stage in each of their campaigns, the club remain unbeaten at home in the competition.

And Kompany, who proved his fitness for Sunday’s derby against Manchester United by playing for 90 minutes against Plzen after a month out with a groin injury, believes the pressure will be off City when Bayern visit on October 2.

"We're playing Bayern at home and even in the Champions League, we have a very good record at home, so there's no reason for us to have too much respect for the opposition,” Kompany said.

“I think the pressure is off us a bit after winning against Plzen. We know if we do our jobs correctly and beat CSKA Moscow and Plzen at home, that should see us through.

"But you're in it to win it, so I guess the game against Bayern will be a very good game and something of a prestige game as well.

“It's one of those games which, if you win, sets you up really nice in the group. And if you don't, then you know you have to win the rest of the games, so I don't believe it's a game changer.

"If you look at the rest of the group, Bayern won their first game against CSKA and we just hope the group won't look too different come the end of the campaign.

“We want to be in the top two of the group."

Having made a winning start to their Champions League group, Kompany admits the focus at City now turns towards the United game on Sunday.

"It's always a game you look forward to, and I don't think it's just the people in Manchester,” Kompany said. “All over the world people look forward to enjoying it. It's a game that attracts a lot of attention.

"I never take it for granted and I feel blessed that I am able to participate in those games. You do your best to make sure you play well in these games.

"Nobody predicted we would win 6-1 at Old Trafford two years ago, that they would then beat us at the Etihad and that we would win at Old Trafford.

“I guess that's what the fans want too. It is unpredictable."