The Manchester derby always carries its own weather system. This one arrives early in the calendar and heavy with consequence. On Sunday 14 September 2025, the Etihad hosts the 197th meeting between the neighbours, each side trying to shake off an awkward start to the season.
City opened with a statement at Wolves then stumbled against Tottenham and Brighton. United were embarrassed in the cup at Grimsby, then steadied with a win over Burnley and now face a test of nerve and identity. The air at kick-off will be wired, and the table may look very different by full time.
City and United have points to prove
The state of the rivalry
United took four points off City last season, including a late smash-and-grab at the Etihad in December and a turgid goalless draw at Old Trafford in April. Those games dented City’s momentum and offered United supporters a rare set of bragging rights. It means the derby arrives with a little edge on City’s side and a useful memory bank on United’s.
City’s three-match resume is a neat arc. Wolves away was a 4–0 procession powered by Tijjani Reijnders on debut and Erling Haaland doing Erling Haaland things. That was followed by a flat 2–0 home defeat to Spurs and a late collapse at Brighton. The champions of accumulation looking a touch human is a rarity, and it adds friction to the build-up.
United’s month has been messy but not hopeless. The League Cup exit to League Two Grimsby turned up the volume around Ruben Amorim, yet the league performances have offered flickers. No team has more shots on target, or more xG created. The upshot after three matches is United a notch ahead of City in the nascent table. Early days, but enough to colour the narrative.
Three ex-Man United bosses sacked in the SAME week 😳
— 365Scores (@365Scores) September 1, 2025
▫️ Solskjær (Beşiktaş) ❌
▫️ Ten Hag (Leverkusen) ❌
▫️ Mourinho (Fenerbahçe) ❌
Now with Amorim at Old Trafford… should he be worried about the cursed seat? 👀 pic.twitter.com/VpIrIyk6e0
Managers and mood
Pep Guardiola is still Pep Guardiola, renewal by tinkering, even after a summer that shifted the goalkeeping picture. There is a new dynamic in net and a midfield refresh around Rodri with Reijnders’ arrival. City’s immediate brief is simple: stop the bleeding and restore their usual passing chokehold.
Amorim, appointed last November, is still wrestling United’s squad into his 3-4-3 principles. The noise around him is part of the job description in M16, but the club’s public messaging this week has been pragmatic. He has doubled down on choices, not least in goal, and that clarity at least gives United a defined look going into a daunting away day.
Team News
City’s bulletin matters because it shapes their rest defence and their ability to attack the wide channels. Club guidance suggests Omar Marmoush, Rayan Ait-Nouri, and Rayan Cherki are out, with John Stones a doubt and Mateo Kovacic still sidelined. The keeper call is the headline. James Trafford started the first three league matches, but deadline-day signing Gianluigi Donnarumma could debut. It would be a baptism made for slow-motion replays.
Donnarumma proud to join City under a legendary manager✨ pic.twitter.com/oyWr3AWwxh
— 365Scores (@365Scores) September 11, 2025
United’s update is more definitive. Altay Bayindir keeps his place in goal, while Matheus Cunha, Mason Mount and Diogo Dalot are all out. That affects two lines at once. Without Cunha the central striker choice becomes Joshua Zirkzee or Benjamin Sesko. Without Dalot, the right wing-back slot is likely to fall to Noussair Mazraoui or Amad Diallo in a more aggressive interpretation. Mount’s absence nudges minutes for Kobbie Mainoo or a tweak in the shape of Bruno’s roaming.
How City want to play and how United can hurt them
In possession, expect City to set up in their usual asymmetry. Rodri anchors circulation, often dropping between centre-backs to let full backs or half backs step high. Reijnders’ vertical passing is the new wrinkle, stitching first and third lines with one touch. If Oscar Bobb starts off the right and Jeremy Doku from the left, the dribbling threat will try to isolate United’s outside centre-backs and wing-backs.
The objective is familiar: get to the cut-back zone, drag United’s back three into horizontal sprints and make the six-yard box Haaland’s living room. The early-season wobble came when Spurs and Brighton disrupted the first pass after regain and forced City into rushed entries. If the tempo is clean, City’s five-lane attack still overwhelms.
Amorim’s United is a transitions team right now. The 3-4-3 becomes a 5-2-3 without the ball, with the front three set to trigger from specific cues: a square ball to a centre-back, a heavy touch from the pivot, or a backwards pass to the keeper. When United break, Mbeumo’s straight-line speed and Bruno’s through-ball habits give them a path to goal.
The problem is sustaining pressure phases. Against better pressing sides, United’s own build can derail. That is where Casemiro’s positioning and De Ligt’s diagonals into the wing-backs are vital to get out. If United can flip the field two or three times per half, the match becomes ragged, which suits them.
Key battles to watch
Rodri and Reijnders vs Casemiro and Fernandes
This is the control room. If City’s double pivot takes the sting out of transitions, United spend long spells in their own half. If Casemiro can win first contact and Fernandes finds the spare man early, City’s rest defence is suddenly under proper stress.
Haaland vs De Ligt and Shaw
United’s back line has size, but Haaland’s movement is more about timing than brawn. The Norwegian’s form dipped across the last two league outings, though the chance volume is still there. One clean channel run and the game tilts.
Bobb or Doku vs United’s right side
If Mazraoui starts, he offers aggression stepping into midfield. If Amad plays wing-back, United are braver going forward but riskier going the other way. City will try to pin that side and work the underlap.
Bayindir vs the ball
United’s keeper choice is settled for now. The job at the Etihad is as much about tempo as shot-stopping: quick, accurate restarts and no freebies from crosses. City pile up territory through corners and cut-backs. United need their keeper calm through the storm.
Likely XIs
Manchester City
Donnarumma; Gvardiol (if confirmed fit), Dias, Aké; Nunes; Rodri, Reijnders; Bernardo; Bobb, Doku; Haaland.
Manchester United
Bayindir; Yoro, De Ligt, Shaw; Mazraoui, Casemiro, Fernandes, Dorgu; Amad, Mbeumo; Zirkzee or Sesko. Bench options to watch: Mainoo for midfield control and Zirkzee or Sesko for the last 30 minutes when the pitch opens.
Where the goals come from
For City, the classic pattern remains a cut-back finish or a back-post arrival after a far-side overload. Haaland’s numbers tell the story, but Reijnders driving through the right half-space has already unlocked shots for others.
For United, it is about stealing field position. Recoveries in the middle third that feed Mbeumo on the outside shoulder of a centre-back are their clearest route. Bruno’s late runs trail the play and create rebound chances. If United score, the first look is likely in transition rather than a long half-court possession.
What each side must absolutely avoid
City cannot afford a nervy first 15 minutes. The recent defeats have placed a spotlight on defensive restarts after turnovers. An early United break would spike the tension. That is why the Donnarumma decision matters. If he starts, the chemistry with centre-backs and Rodri on short distribution must be instant. If Trafford keeps his place, he needs a low-event opening to settle the stadium.
United cannot drop their wing-backs onto the last line too soon. If they turn a 3-4-3 into a passive 5-2-3 without counters, City will throw 70 percent possession at them and the dam will crack. The courage is to keep one wing-back high and one tucked, then pick moments to spring. The other non-negotiable is avoidable fouls near their own box. City’s rehearsed routines create chaos and second shots.
Subplots that will shape the mood
A debut for Donnarumma would be a theatre piece of its own, not least because United arrive with their own new No 1 story. Bayindir keeping the gloves adds a derby-within-a-derby for the goalkeepers’ union. Beyond that, two summer signings could colour the day. Reijnders has already raised City’s pass tempo. Mbeumo, a rare direct runner in United’s front line, gives Amorim the outlet he craves.
