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After the trauma of Manchester United’s Champions League outing at RB Leipzig last Tuesday, when they were exposed on defense, perhaps there was something reassuring about a stalemate with their neighbors.
From the perspective of Ole Gunnar Solskjær, the coach who only seems to deal with chaos and extremes, the priority was certainly avoiding further damage. He couldn’t afford another high-profile loss that would have given his critics more ammunition.
It was a derby that will not last long in the memory. Despite the tension on the razor’s edge, the feeling that a mistake or an action could prove decisive, there were few precious moments of true drama in front of goal.
However, Solskjær would have enjoyed the stamina shown by two of his players, the character David de Gea and Harry Maguire. It represented a dose of redemption, the latest installment of the game’s ups and downs.
De Gea, who had been high on the guilty list in Leipzig, was involved in the first half one-on-one with Riyad Mahrez and prevailed while Maguire, who also worked against the Bundesliga team, was able to reflect on some important interventions .
City marginally had the best chance and Pep Guardiola will be irritated that he was left blank. Kevin De Bruyne carried a latent threat, but he and his teammates couldn’t find a way to get past De Gea and the club continues to feel like a puzzle this season. He is no longer the City scorer and has missed Sergio Agüero, who has endured a season affected by injuries and was absent due to illness.
At least they have found some solidity. They have not conceded a goal in the Premier League for 565 minutes and, at John Stones, they had one of the most outstanding players of the night.
The central half are back in favor, ahead of Aymeric Laporte, and their confidence would not have been lost for England coach Gareth Southgate, who was present. Southgate last played with the Stones in November 2019. Could a recall be in the works?
The closest City came to concede was in the 47th minute when Bruno Fernandes crossed for Marcus Rashford, who took a bunt and moved the ball just before Kyle Walker arrived to commit a foul. Referee Chris Kavanagh awarded the penalty only for the VAR to detect that Rashford had been slightly offside.
One of the big questions was how United would start, having done so poorly in their previous four games in all competitions. The numbers showed that they had been behind in the first half in each one, but here they were close to taking the lead at 12 minutes.
Victor Lindelöf got up to launch a shot into Luke Shaw’s corner from the right and Scott McTominay pulled all his tendons to reach the ball at the far post. He launched himself with his right foot instead of his left and couldn’t get there. United had a couple more blinks before the break from the corners and a couple of shots around the City area. Fernandes threw a difficult half volley while the remembered Paul Pogba was displaced after a fumble from Ederson.
City had the clearest chances in the first half and none better than the one that saw De Gea distinguish himself after 35 minutes. It was a lovely move from box to box, Gabriel Jesus led it but inevitably it was De Bruyne who turned it on. A gasp was heard inside the stadium as he received Jesús’ pass outside the area and instantly played at Mahrez in the overlap, setting him up against De Gea. After the stoppage, De Bruyne lifted the rebound high.
Raheem Sterling had looked dangerous before, although his touch was strong after a pass from De Bruyne in the seventh minute. The forward’s best moment came when he exchanged passes with De Bruyne and cut sharply inside Aaron Wan-Bissaka before skating away from Lindelöf. Maguire blocked his shot.
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City could also target the 26th minute opener when Mahrez dropped a ball over the top for Jesus, who caught it on the half volley ahead of Wan-Bissaka, only to blaze high. It was a difficult skill and Wan-Bissaka had applied some pressure. Jesus will feel that he should have done better.
Guardiola played Fernandinho and Rodri in front of his four behind and, although De Bruyne tried to remove City from their role as errant attacking midfielder, the selections were scarce. Unusually, City didn’t send many men forward.
Solskjær was once again a back four, having started in a 3-4-1-2 system in Leipzig. His big move was to put Pogba down the left of a midfield and the Frenchman showed in flashes, although it was Fernandes who unleashed the play early in the second half that almost led to the big gap. Walker’s challenge to Rashford was rash. The VAR would save it.
Briefly, United picked up the pace and Rashford fired uselessly after being found by Pogba. At the other end, Maguire blocked De Bruyne after an offside-looking Jesus had escaped. United’s record at home remains poor. They have won only once here in the league all season. This time, they will take the point.
