We have truly earned this weekend, football fans. In month that has been more bereft of action, and thus tedious than it really should have been, we now have not just one, but two headliner derby fixtures to sink our teeth into this weekend.
We covered the North London Derby already, now we move on to the latest team news surrounding the Manchester Derby.
For United, Harry Maguire is out while Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial are available.
Manchester Derby FYIs
Kickoff: Sun Oct 2, Etihad Stadium, 2pm
Starting XI Predictions: City United
After Extra Time Pod: Spotify Apple
Google Result Probability: City 73% United 11% Draw 16%
Odds: Man City (-291) vs Man United (+650) | Draw (+450)
“Anthony Martial been training with the group all week, really happy with that situation,” said Ten Hag.
“Marcus Rashford also joined training.”
This will be a big boost to United, who will need all hands-on deck against the juggernaut that is Manchester City. While Maguire has been awful, for both club and country, Ten Hag backs his captain to eventually get things right.
“I have to back him but I back him because I believe in him,” the United manager said to a news conference today.
“In the period I worked with him in preseason was good, really good, training and games, so then he fell out [of the team] but it’s also to do with the centre-backs playing now and even after he wasn’t in the team he trained really well and the quality was there.
“What you see is high potential. In the dressing room, the coaches and the players believe in him. That’s what I told him. I’m sure he can do it and I’m convinced of that.”
Maguire has certainly been a whipping boy (for both fans of United and England) on social media. He’s well aware of how much he’s criticized too. However, the Dutchman seems to truly believe in the 29-year-old central defender.
Paul M. Banks is the owner/manager of The Bank (TheSportsBank.Net) and author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” as well as “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He has regularly appeared in WGN, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune, and he co-hosts the After Extra Time podcast, part of Edge of the Crowd Network. Follow him and the website on Twitter and Instagram.