Blunt and tame, this 196th Manchester derby was a curio that failed to ignite despite the cross-town rivalry. Towards the close, Joshua Zirkzee had the contest’s clearest opening: the No 11 swung a boot at Patrick Dorgu’s cross and connected cleanly but Ederson saved, cat-like, and Manchester City escaped; as they did, also, when a later penalty shout for Mateo Kovacic’s challenge on Casemiro was correctly waved away.
So this finished as a non-event in the sun, with scant incident and only marginally more goalmouth action.
Pep Guardiola rued dropping two points in the chase for a Champions League berth – City remain fifth, while next for Ruben Amorim is United’s Europa League quarter-final first leg at Lyon on Thursday. Claim the competition and the Portuguese’s team will be in the blue riband continental club tournament next season, but the prospect is far away.
In the four minutes of added time, United rallied and were more potent but both teams lacked imagination and ruthlessness before goal. As United’s players wandered off at the final whistle, City went to thank their travelling fans, who applauded Kevin De Bruyne following his final match representing Guardiola’s side at their arch-rival’s home before departing in the summer.
At the same juncture, the sit-in organised by The 1958 Group to protest against the Glazer family’s ownership began around the stadium: for those taking part, gazing out on to an empty pitch was only slightly less invigorating than what had just been witnessed.
Eric Cantona was here, too, and the former United favourite saw a blistering move go close to undoing City inside 30 seconds.
The No 9, Rasmus Højlund, dropped back, tipped the ball to Alejandro Garnacho and his pace caused Rúben Dias to chop the left winger down. United wanted a penalty but John Brooks ruled it was outside the area, the VAR did not disagree, and the referee booked the centre-back.
Bruno Fernandes smacked the free-kick into the wall and the resulting corner was uneventful, an augury of the afternoon fare.
Guardiola handed Nico O’Reilly a first derby start and a curving pass from the young left-back found Omar Marmoush, whose shot was blocked by Harry Maguire. Result: City’s first corner, which De Bruyne delivered, O’Reilly tried to backheel, and United scrambled clear.
Garnacho provides an interesting study as he is for sale despite a buccaneering style that is the epitome of the United way. There are flashes, too, of an improving technique and football brain, as when killing a towering ball dead then, later, gazing up and dropping a chip on to Diogo Dalot’s toes. But when Dalot crossed from the right, Garnacho’s stooping header missed: an illustration of why he is not yet the complete package. When a switch to the right missed Højlund and arrived – eventually – to Dorgu, his right – and weaker – foot let him down via a clumsy touch.
Garnacho shredded City at will. Each time he danced forward Guardiola went to a crouch. The No 17’s pace was a knife the champions could not blunt. Twice more he rocketed through but the threat faded because of poor decisions – as when underhitting a pass to Fernandes.
City, configured in a lesser seen 4‑1‑2‑2‑1, lacked width as O’Reilly pushed in from the left and Bernardo Silva and Phil Foden the right. Guardiola bewailed the narrow channels his men squeezed the ball about in which intrigued as he was responsible for the shape.
By half-time their fans had been treated to speculative Foden and Ilkay Gündogan efforts, the odd corner and not much else. Missing the injured Erling Haaland, they were toothless.
United had more imagination, moving the ball fast and into City’s area despite a 38.3% possession share. Fernandes was the schemer-in-chief, his cuteness shielding the ball for a Casemiro attempt, or game-sense taking him marauding along the right.
The last act was at the start of the second half and De Bruyne caught the mood. A burst down the right allowed him to fire the ball over to where Haaland usually lurks but his stand-in, Marmoush, occupied the wrong zone.
Next, the Belgian popped up outside United’s area and scuffed the ball. United’s riposte was to have Højlund, then Leny Yoro threaten to hit headers goalwards but both were thwarted.
Victor Lindelöf, for Maguire, and Jérémy Doku, for Foden (who suffered abuse Guardiola later said “lacked class”), were changes, on 57 minutes, for each side. The Swede soon conceded a free-kick when Marmoush rolled him. Lindelöf complained, then was happy to see the Egyptian power the set piece into the underworked André Onana’s clutches.
Could De Bruyne conjure something to break the stalemate? He tried, arrowing in a corner from the right, the ball bounced up to Marmoush and Onana beat out his scything volley.
Afterwards, Fernandes offered succinct analysis: “We were a little bit more dangerous, we needed the killer instinct. City want to have the ball, and you have to be patient. We did that well and we were very well organised.”
