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The first half was poor quality in terms of passing and creating chances in the final third, with slow build-up and a reluctance to overcommit players from both teams. The best chance fell to Riyad Mahrez after Kevin de Bruyne’s pass, but David de Gea made the save.
After the break, Marcus Rashford was awarded a penalty but later canceled for offside, while De Bruyne had a shot from close range blocked inside the six-yard box just after the hour.
Neither team seemed fully committed to going for the three points and the tie leaves them seventh and eighth in the league respectively.
Here are five things we learned from the game at Old Trafford.
Hopefully this is the last …
No supporters are allowed at level 3 locations, so there are no supporters in the Manchester derby.
If it wasn’t obvious beforehand, there is a huge difference between having fans and not having them; even games with only 2,000 currently have a noticeable increase in atmosphere and intensity at key moments.
This game was flat at all times, certainly on the field and with very little outside of it, even from the coaching staff, etc.
Hopefully this will be Manchester’s first and last derby to be played behind closed doors; As a show, it clearly needed the momentum of the fans to bring it to life.
Much of the headlines this past week, when it comes to United, have been linked to Paul Pogba again.
It happens without him needing to do anything, and sometimes because no do anything, and it was definitely a surprise to see him in the lineup in a game as big as this, given some of the games he’s been out of recently.
Pogba’s return didn’t mean the diamond, unsurprisingly, but saw him pushed to complete on the left wing where Marcus Rashford would normally be – he was up front, with Anthony Martial only fit for bench service.
No. 6 worked… fine. No big shock, no dramatic mistakes, some quality moments, one or two occasions when the opponents passed him by. Like the rest of the game, he is capable of more than was shown, but he certainly did nothing to jeopardize the outcome.
A trade with Bruno Fernandes after the break saw him more centralized at times and there was definitely more to admire about his play from there, but Pogba remains a question mark on the team, both on whether he should play and whether he should stay.
Lack of attack quality
De Bruyne. Fernandes. Pound sterling. Rashford. Greenwood. Mahrez.
The players were there to create, score, win. There should have been rhythm and invention, cunning and intention; instead, there was terribly little of all of the above.
It said a lot about the game that the most notable moments in the final third came through bad kicks from Ederson or when the offside flag was up anyway.
For United’s defense, maligned in recent performances, a clean sheet is a boost, but perhaps both feel the rewards would have been much greater if they had offered more aggression and desire in the final third of Saturday.
At first glance, a draw against City is not a bad result in isolation.
However, it is now a victory in six home league games for United this season, with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s team scoring at an average rate of once every two games so far.
Apart from the most docile pair of Bruno Fernandes efforts imaginable, United had no goal threats or shots on target at all times; Again, in isolation, it might be understandable and even acceptable in a unique situation, but it is no an isolated event.
This game was a chance to bounce back after a hugely disappointing European outing and a chance to put on a show at home, where United have already lost three times in the league this season.
Instead, it was another turgid 90 minutes at Old Trafford, offering very little suggestion that the team was back on the right track.
As for Man City, they will only be talked about as title challengers this season and rightly so, but they are still off the beat today.
The gap at the moment is five points from them to the top, with all challengers having played 11 times. It could open up more when Spurs, Chelsea and Liverpool play later and on Sunday, although City will again have an extra game to play, of course.
Guardiola has less cause for concern than Solskjaer, but his team has still won less than 50 percent of its league games this season.
That’s unheard of, and the walk-through playstyle in the day will mean it’s a demonstration, and you’ll want to get through quickly as a result.
This weekend get a £ 10 free bet with Betfair, when you bet £ 10 on the same multiple game in the Premier League. Conditions: Minimum £ 10 for the same game Multiple bet on any EPL match this Friday through Sunday. Free bet valid for 72 hours, awarded when the bet is settled. Does not include cashed bets. Terms and conditions apply.
