Manchester City vs Manchester United – Carling Cup Semi Final (First Leg)

Manchester City v Manchester United
Wednesday, January 6th
Kick Off: 7.45 pm

Just when we thought that the FA Cup third round was not going to throw up any major shocks, other than Liverpool being held to a draw by Reading, Leeds United go and turn over their old rivals Manchester United at Old Trafford. The League One side, with a goal from Jermaine Beckford, stole the headlines of the third round, leaving Alex Ferguson cursing his lack lustre side. It was win for Leeds, which was well deserved through hard work and enterprise when pushing forward, exposing some of the frailties that has plagued Manchester United at the back this season. This time it was simply the pace of the Leeds forward which undone the Red Devils.

Now however, United have the chance to at least get some silverware under their belt, which should ease the restless natives around Old Trafford. Yes, they are still in the hunt for the Premier League title, and still in the Champions League, but they have suffered some very unexpected defeats this season. They have crashed and burned in a quarter of their Premier League fixtures, and this latest shock exit from the FA Cup, the first time ever Alex Ferguson has gone out in the third round while at the helm of United, will no doubt sound harsh repercussions throughout the team.

There has been a lack of quality this season from United, who have had more than their fair share of injury problems to contend with. Now this makes the Carling Cup Semi Final against neighbours Manchester City, all the more spicy. In terms of optimism, there is suddenly a lot more ringing around the air at Eastlands, after the departure of Mark Hughes. Italian Roberto Mancini has stepped into the hot seat, and has made a good start with three wins from three. They overcame a tricky FA Cup third round tie away at Middlesbrough, and where Hughes was only guiding the light blues to draw after draw, Mancini has already appeared to have made a difference.

Even with a weakened side ahead of the Carling Cup fixture, Mancini took a conservative approach which paid off in the end, even if it was not the most glamorous of victories. Put simply, they got the job done, and that is the fine line between keeping your job and not. Being able to scrape tight away victories counts as massive three points in the league, and when it comes to the cup, there is often at least one potentially difficult fixture like that to get through.

But is back home for Mancini’s Manchester City now, as they look to make Manchester United suffer even more. This is where they will need to press home as much of an advantage as they can, ahead of the second leg at Old Trafford. The two sides produced a classic when they met in the Premier League in September, with a late Michael Owen goal stealing the points in a 4-3 victory for the reds. City have yet to concede a goal under Mancini, and they will look to build upon that by closing out United. Can United bounce back from that shock FA Cup defeat? No doubt Ferguson will be giving his players the hair dryer treatment at the next training sessions, and there will no doubt be changes to the starting eleven on Wednesday night.

BETTING STATS

Last 5 Head to Head
Man Utd 4, Man City 3
Man Utd 2, Man City 0
Man City  0, Man Utd 1
Man Utd 1, Man City 2
Man City 1, Man Utd 0

Last 5 Matches Goals
Man City – 10 For, 6 Against
Man Utd – 11 For, 5 Against

Last 10 Matches Form
Man City – W6, D3, L1
Man Utd – W7, D0, L3

Match Prices:
Man City to win: 11/8 at Totesport
Draw: 23/10 at Ladbrokes
Man Utd to win: 12/5 at Boylesports