Manchester United were beaten 3–0 in Sunday’s derby, as Erling Haaland struck twice to sink the Red Devils.
Ruben Amorim has enjoyed plenty of success against Pep Guardiola since venturing into the world of management, and United’s come-from-behind triumph at the Etihad last season has perhaps been the high point of the Portuguese’s reign so far.
His team were comforted by a dramatic 3–2 win over Burnley before the break, and the flaws City had manifested in the aftermath of their emphatic victory at Molineux meant there would’ve been a modest confidence within the United ranks heading into Sunday’s game.
The visitors started brightly enough, and they were perhaps encouraged by the absence of a master distributor between the Manchester City posts. Amorim’s side had some early success winning the ball back high up the pitch, but they were unable to make the most of their dangerous transition moments.
Then, by virtue of an obvious overload in midfield, the hosts started to have their way with the Red Devils, and Phil Foden broke the deadlock to stifle United’s brief early momentum. Foden’s guided header came following a jinky Jérémy Doku run, with the Belgian bypassing Luke Shaw with ease to tee up the Englishman for his first Premier League goal since January,
City were in the ascendancy up until the interval, although Guardiola’s side were far from their fluent best with the ball. While United hadn’t offered all that much towards the end of the first half, they were well in the contest at half-time.
The visitors certainly came out for the second half boasting that belief, but such hope was quickly dashed by Haaland, who cutely rounded off a slick City move ignited by the excellent Foden. United then came close to imploding, as a woeful Manuel Ugarte giveaway almost led to Haaland’s second goal in quick succession. Remarkably, the striker’s effort kissed the inside of the post and stayed out, having rounded Altay Bayındır.
The reliable goal machine would soon grab City’s third, however, with Haaland’s one-on-one finish arriving after Gianluigi Donnarumma had made his first outstanding save in sky blue to deny Bryan Mbeumo. The hosts then threatened a derby day bloodbath during the closing stages, with United’s already questionable structural integrity dissipating completely.
Tijjani Reijnders missed a gilt-edge chance to add a humiliating fourth before the visitors squandered a flurry of openings late on to score a forgettable consolation.
It’s now eight wins in 31 Premier League games for Amorim at United. Tick tock?
Man Utd Player Ratings vs. Man City (3-4-2-1)
Subs not used: Tom Heaton (GK), Senne Lammens (GK), Ayden Heaven, Tyler Fredricson, Diego Leon.
Player of the Match: Erling Haaland (Man City)
Man City (4-2-3-1): Gianluigi Donnarumma; Abdukodir Khusanov, Rúben Dias, Joško Gvardiol, Nico O’Reilly; Rodri, Tijjani Reijnders; Bernardo Silva, Phil Foden, Jeremy Doku; Erling Haaland.
Substitutes: James Trafford (GK), Nathan Aké, Nico González, Savinho, Matheus Nunes, Oscar Bobb, Divine Mukasa, Rico Lewis, Stephen Mfuni.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Man Utd Player Ratings vs. Man City: Red Devils Fold in Limp 3–0 Defeat.