Manchester City are set to face derby rivals Manchester United at Old Trafford. The game will be ever so important for City, who are amidst a title race. The odds highly favor the Blue side of Manchester, with the likes of Erling Haaland, and Julian Alvarez, picking up form. An analyst, however, has surprisingly claimed that Guardiola’s side will look more vulnerable against Ten Hag’s United.

There have been instances in the last few matches when City’s defense has been penetrated easily. But it’s far from the injury-ridden backline of the Red Devils, with Luke Shaw, Tyrell Malacia, and Lisandro Martinez out with long-term injuries.

Analyst claims Manchester City look more vulnerable against Manchester United

Manchester City is currently 3rd in the Premier League table, five points behind league leaders Tottenham, and five places above Manchester United, who stand eighth. Notably, in their previous five games, City have failed to keep a clean sheet, something that is unlike the reigning champions.

Speaking along a similar idea, analyst Rob Dawson on ESPN said,”You know City looks more vulnerable now than they have done in the past heading into these games. I think United are set up in a way that Guardiola doesn’t particularly like. You know Ten Hag will set his team up to hit them on the break, and they’ve got pace on the break, which Guardiola doesn’t tend to like.”

Talking about how he might just end up regretting his take, he added, “You know obviously, this is going to come back and bite me, and it’s going to be six-nil to City obviously, so we can talk about this next, but I think the United might win.” Sticking to his initial pick, Dawson said, “I think both teams will score, but I think United can win this.”

Nevertheless, there is some respite for City, who will depend on Julian Alvarez and Haaland against a dwindling United backline. The Norwegian will also be keen on ending conversations around his inability to score against big teams.

Manchester City will depend on both their strikers Erling Haaland and Julian Alvarez to score the goals. However, the worry might be that Haaland tends to go silent in games against big clubs, and struggles to get chances in the opposition box. Julian Alvarez, however, has stepped up when required. There are instances where Haaland becomes the supporting striker and Alvarez becomes the main striker to finish off chances.

Erling Haaland also struggled to find chances in City’s 1-0 loss against fellow title challengers, Arsenal. Despite these struggles, Haaland does have plenty of goals in the bag already. The Norwegian forward has scored 11 goals in 12 games this season in all competitions.

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Who will win the Manchester Derby? Let us know in the comments.