A top of the table clash saw old rivals Manchester United host Manchester City in a derby which actually has a lot of significance in the title race for the Premier League, City were looking to get back to the top of the league while Manchester United were looking to overtake their city rivals. This match had seen a glut of goals in recent games but this time around the game ended in a goalless draw.
The best chance was for Manchester United who saw Jesse Lingard hit the crossbar after a great ball over the top from Anthony Martial. With both clubs cancelling each other out, we provide the five talking points from the game.
Defence wins the game
Everyone predicted a lot of goals in this tie, after all we have seen a 4-3, 6-1 and much more from these games but two well-drilled defences negated the other’s attack. Vincent Kompany returned to the centre of the City defence while Manchester United had Marcos Rojo doing incredibly well in the game. The teams did try to attack but their defence starred more than the attack and neither team should be upset about it, after all, every manager wants his team to keep a clean sheet.
Martial was the bright spot for United
A game where many expected Wayne Rooney to shine actually saw another United attacker pick up the reins. While there really wasn’t much to report in terms of attacking ability, there was one man trying to get things done for Manchester United. Anthony Martial was the bright spark for the team and was looking to take on defenders as well; he also created the one great chance for Jesse Lingard and can be then seen as the one positive taken from an attacking point of view for the red half of Manchester.