Manchester United vs Manchester City
7th January 2000hrs
Football – England –EFL Cup
Pick Both teams to score
Bookmaker Bet365
Odds: 81/100 odds taken 2000 GMT, Monday 6 January)
It’s a Manchester derby in the semi-final of the EFL Cup as United host City at Old Trafford. Both will be determined to get a positive result ahead of the second leg as they bid to make next month’s final.
Manchester United Preview – Are United set to follow up their derby victory in December with another success here?
Following a very busy December Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s Manchester United are again preparing for another chaotic month. Saturday’s draw with Wolves in the third round of the FA Cup means they will now have eight games in January, factoring in that replay. It’s arguably a game they could be doing without with so many injury concerns at the moment but competing for trophies is the expectation for United and Solskjaer knows this only too well. Tuesday presents a big chance for him to take a step towards his first final as boss of the club and in a competition which they won back in 2017.
United’s passage to this stage has not been straightforward with a struggle at home to Rochdale – requiring penalties to progress. It’s been more impressive since, though, with a good performance to beat Chelsea away from home before comfortably seeing off Colchester at home last month. Solskjaer opted to rest key players for the match against Wolves on Saturday but you can be sure it will be his strongest team he can select for this one. United will be hopeful of another big performance against their rivals having beaten them 2-1 in the league last month.
Manchester City Preview – Can City got revenge for their defeat last month and continue excellent record in this competition?
With the league looking like it will be lost to Liverpool, Pep Guardiola’s attention now switches to all three cup competitions as he looks for more success. The Champions League is clearly the priority but Guardiola has always targeted the FA Cup and EFL Cup during his time at City. That’s evidenced by the fact that they have won it three out of the last four season, most recently beating Chelsea on penalties in last year’s final. It’s been very easy for them until this point, scoring three goals in each of their games and Preston, Southampton and Oxford. It’s likely they will face a more difficult challenge over the course of these two legs.
There’s no doubt that this season has been much more of a struggle overall for Guardiola and his City players. Injuries to key players, particularly in defence, have been especially damaging. It could yet turn out to be a memorable campaign if they can succeed in the cup competitions with the Champions League continue to evade them. Before that, the next month or so is all about domestic football and attempting to retain this trophy and the FA Cup which was part of a historic treble in the previous season.
Key-Facts – Manchester United vs Manchester City
- United last won the EFL Cup back in 2016/17 when defeating Manchester City en route to the final that season
- City have won this competition three out the last four seasons and have beaten their rivals here on the last two occasions
- It was a 2-1 win for United when the sides met in the league last month at the Etihad
Manchester United vs Manchester City Betting Advice
City will still be hurting from losing 2-1 at home to United in the league last month. The pace of United’s counter attack was key on that occasion and that will be the tactic that the hosts looks to use to their advantage once again. City have to be better prepared for it and get more control of the midfield to prevent them being cut open as often as they were in that first half. They have won on their last two visits to Old Trafford but did lose 1-0 in the competition back in 2016 – the season that United went on to win the EFL Cup.
