Reigning Premier League champions Manchester City will be looking to continue their march towards yet another Carabao Cup final as they take on city rivals Manchester United in the second leg of this season’s semifinal. The fixture at Old Trafford ended in a comfortable 3-1 win for the away side on the night, and Pep Guardiola will be confident in his team’s chances of seeing it through against United, especially considering that they have a two goal aggregate advantage.
Manchester United picked up a morale boosting victory against Tranmere Rovers in the FA Cup recently and will be hoping to carry that momentum into this Manchester Derby. The Red Devils don’t have the worst record against City but will have to be at their absolute best to turn the tie around. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will be hoping that one of his attackers can pull a performance out of a hat tonight.
Talking Tactics
Manchester City
Considering that this is a home fixture for the Citizens, we expect Pep Guardiola’s men to dominate possession of the tie, with the back-line pushing towards the halfway mark right from the off. The full-backs will surely look to overlap to attract the fragile United midfielders, thereby allowing players like Raheem Sterling and Kevin De Bruyne pockets of space to pick up in the middle of the park.
Irrespective of who starts up front, the gaffer could set them up to run in-behind the United defence, especially considering the pace advantage the Citizens would have.
Manchester United
The Red Devils could be in for a fairly stressful ninety minutes of football against City, and Guardiola is sure to value every piece of silverware that is available to him, now that the Premier League seems beyond their reach. United are sure to be forced to defend deep white early on and will have to depend on the pace of players like Daniel James and Anthony Martial to try and produce something on the counter.
Team News
Manchester City
The return of Aymeric Laporte to regular first-team action is sure to have come as fantastic news to Guardiola, who is set to miss out on Leroy Sané for this fixture as usual. Elsewhere, Riyad Mahrez and Joao Cancelo were both being considered as doubts for this tie, but are likely to return to the side.
Predicted Lineup: Bravo; Walker, Fernandinho, Garcia, Mendy, Rodri, Foden, De Bruyne; Silva, Aguero, Sterling.
Manchester United
The absences of Paul Pogba and Scott McTominay in the heart of the United midfield continue to haunt Ole Gunnar Solskjaer as he prepares for another week without his two biggest stars in the position. Marcus Rashford’s injury needs no reminder to United fans, while Nemanja Matic’s little niggle is sure to be a worrying sign.
Predicted Lineup: Romero; Wan-Bissaka, Lindelof, Maguire, Shaw; Pereira, Fred; Dalot, Greenwood, Mata; Martial.
Key Men
Manchester City
Sergio Aguero has got back amongst the goals in recent weeks and looks like he’s firing on all cylinders once again. Although the two goal advantage could prompt a cautious approach from Guardiola, expect the Argentine wizard to be right in the centre of proceedings.
Manchester United
In Marcus Rashford’s absence, it’s essential for Manchester United that former Monaco winger Anthony Martial begins to display his true talents. Over the last few weeks, the Frenchman has been quite poor, to say the least, and has struggled to fill the massive boots left by Rashford.
Betting Odds
Manchester City are the obvious favourites to win this tie at the Etihad Stadium at a rate of 33/100, while the underdogs can be backed at a rather exciting figure of 29/4.
