At this point, I’m not sure anybody, outside of Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, believes we have still have a Premier League title race this season.
If United don’t win at City on Sunday, they’ll be either 14 or 17 points back with just 10 games to play. In this scenario, even the Norwegian will have to concede at that point. Taking all three points on the road will be tough, as City have won 21 in a row and counting.
Manchester Derby FYIs
Kickoff: 5:30 GMT, Sun Mar 7, City of Manchester Stadium
TV: NBCSN (US), Sky Sports (UK)
Starting XI Predictions: City United
Team News for Both Sides: go here
Odds: City -134 United +320 Draw +290
League Form Guide: Manchester City WWWWW United DDWDD
League position: United 2nd, 51 points City 1st, 65 points
However, you can’t win if you can’t score and United’s lack of an attack versus City’s tenacious D is certainly not a recipe for the red side of Manchester to get on the board here. Then again, this series has been much tighter lately than you might think, given the massive disparity between the two clubs since the mid 2010s.
Let’s take a look at who the Norwegian might start in his first team here.
Manchester United Starting XI Prediction at Manchester City (4-2-3-1): Henderson; Wan-Bissaka, Lindelof, Maguire, Shaw; Fred, McTominay; James, Bruno Fernandes, Rashford; Cavani
Prediction: Manchester City 0, Manchester United 0
Yes, of course I had to predict this scoreline, which is getting to be more punchline right now.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank, partnered with News Now. Banks, the author of “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry,” has regularly appeared in WGN, Sports Illustrated, Chicago Tribune and SB Nation. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram.