Manchester City Give Manchester United a Brute Reality Check
Erling Haaland scores hat trick in 6-3 Manchester City derby win, Phil Foden scores hat trick in 2-2 draw with United, Kevin De Bruyne’s relationship with Haaland on the rise, and United’s lack of belief. Let’s take a look at the key points from both games and discuss how they can improve.
Erling Haaland scores hat trick in 6-3 derby win
Erling Haaland scores a hat trick and sets up two others as Manchester City win the Manchester derby 6-3. The Norwegian striker, who signed for PS51 million in the summer, has already scored trebles against Manchester United and Crystal Palace. He has been a consistent threat for City and has the ability to score at will. He also shares the match ball with Phil Foden, who also scored a hat trick.
Haaland has already broken a number of records in the Premier League since joining the club in the summer. Against Manchester United, he became the first player to score a hat trick in three consecutive home games. The hat-trick was completed by Phil Foden in the 72nd minute. However, United did not give up easily and have managed to salvage some respectability.
Phil Foden scores hat trick in 2-2 draw with Manchester United
Phil Foden’s hat-trick was enough to secure a 2-2 draw between Manchester City and Manchester United, which lifted Manchester City to within one point of Premier League leaders Arsenal. Despite this, United remain sixth. Manchester City dominated the game, taking the lead early through Bernardo Silva’s cross and capitalising on some loose marking from Christian Eriksen. Despite this, Manchester United struggled to live up to the high standard of their opponents and were unable to apply pressure.
Foden’s hat trick was City’s best attack in the first half, and he was ably supported by Jack Grealish, another England teammate. Grealish tormented the United defence, with Diogo Dalot booked for trying to thwart Grealish’s run. After winning a free-kick, Grealish set up a goal for Kevin De Bruyne before seeing his effort blocked by Lisandro Martinez.
Kevin De Bruyne’s relationship with Haaland on the rise
Kevin De Bruyne is relishing the prospect of playing alongside Erling Haaland at Manchester City next season. The Belgian forward has made an impressive start to his career under Pep Guardiola, scoring 12 goals in as many games. He is confident that Haaland can contribute to the team’s success and is keen to work with him.
De Bruyne and Haaland’s relationship has become closer in recent years. Haaland has played a crucial role in Kevin De Bruyne’s development. It was a concern for the Belgian that his ban would prevent him from playing in the Champions League. However, De Bruyne was successful in getting his ban overturned.
Lack of belief by Manchester City
Manchester City dominated the first half and their defensive performance was poor. They were often caught out of position and gave away possession at the heart of the pitch. This meant that Manchester City were able to capitalise on the turnovers. The defending champions had a chance to extend their lead but were too complacent. Manchester United could have been down to 10 men before the break.
Manchester City went on to dominate the second half. They led by four goals at the break, but Anthony Martial scored twice from the bench. They were able to find space in the midfield and were 3-0 up after 10 minutes. David De Gea was able to prevent City breaches from breaking the opposition’s back line, but it was not enough to prevent Manchester City from scoring.
Sloppy passing
Manchester City have a tendency to use more outside passes than inside passes. This makes sense, given their main priority is staying compact and limiting counterattacking moments. The attacking style is often characterized by a series of short, sharp passes to players on the flanks. However, this style of play is not ideal and can lead to poor passing decisions.
Manchester City have a tendency to sweep across the pitch, but their attacking players have often failed to deliver crosses from inside spaces. Many of these attacks have been started by the two strikers. However, Mahrez has failed to finish them.