THE BATTLE for bragging rights takes place this Sunday as the two Manchester giants go head to head in the Premier League.
Manchester United host their noisy neighbours Man City at Old Trafford in a game that regularly throws up some surprises.
GettyErik ten Hag’s Manchester United host Pep Guardiola’s Man City side this weekend[/caption]
AFPThere’s only room for one of Bruno Fernandes and Kevin De Bruyne in the combined XI[/caption]
With City some six places and six points ahead of the Red Devils there is a general consensus that they come into the game as favourites, but anything can happen when derby day rolls around.
Here SunSport takes a look which players from the Red and Blue sides of Manchester would make a combined XI this season.
Despite Andre Onana’s Champions League heroics on Tuesday, it’s Ederson that gets the nod in between the sticks.
Nobody is as a calm, cool and collected as the confident Brazilian when it comes to playing out from the back.
And it’d help to have a goalkeeper who knows his back four, because it’s entirely made up of City players.
Josko Gvardiol, Ruben Dias, John Stones and Kyle Walker are the chosen defenders for the side with the Cityzens conceding less goals than any other team this season.
Lisandro Martinez will miss this weekend’s fixture with injury so can’t be included, but has struggled to replicate last season’s form this term anyway.
Stones is back for Pep Guardiola’s side and he slots straight into this side too as a non-negotiable given his diverse skillset.
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GettyMan City duo John Stones and Ruben Dias are the starting XI’s centre-back partnership[/caption]
GettyHarry Maguire misses out on a place despite his recent upturn in form[/caption]
AlamyPremier League newbie Josko Gvardiol makes the cut[/caption]
Although there’s an honourable mention for Harry Maguire who within inches of making the line-up given his recent form and his crucial goal against Copenhagen on Tuesday.
Midfield sees the first addition of a Red Devil as Bruno Fernandes plays alongside Rodri and Julian Alvarez.
With Kevin De Bruyne still out of action, Fernandes has to come in to offer that creative outlet alongside the firing Alvarez’s goal threat.
Rodri sits at the base of the midfield as possibly the best player in the Premier League so far this season, never mind Manchester.
Bernardo Silva narrowly misses out because of Alvarez’s stunning four goals and three assists already in the league this season.
Phil Foden plays off the right with the England star flourishing in Pep’s side this term in the absence of De Bruyne.
And Marcus Rashford narrowly beats Jeremy Doku out on the left flank to be the only other Man Utd player in the squad.
Both players have the same goal contributions in the league this season and Rashford’s phenomenal campaign last year just gives him the edge.
While the inevitable Erling Haaland leads the line with his nine goals in the league this season being just two less than the amount netted by the ENTIRE Man Utd team this season.
GettyPhil Foden and Julian Alvarez narrowly beat out their teammate Jeremy Doku from Man City’s fluid forward thinking players[/caption]
GettyMarcus Rashford is one of only two Man Utd players in the team[/caption]
GettyErling Haaland starts up top of the combined side[/caption] Creator – [#item_custom_dc:creator]
