This has got to be one of the most exciting times to be at Manchester, there are two clubs in the Premier League but more important than that, they have two of the best managers leading the sides out for Premier League battle this season.
Jose Mourinho is in the red half while his long-time rival, Pep Guardiola is in the blue half and this is just the start of what could be one of the most exciting Premier League seasons ever. The two clubs have also started doing their important business in the transfer window and it seems that Manchester United and Jose Mourinho are doing the better business thanks to the signings of Eric Bailly, Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
Manchester City have done their bit as well and they have signed Ilkay Gundogan and Nolito but we suspect Pep will have a few more signings up his sleeve. The titanic clash between the two clubs will be interesting but which team has the better starting lineup and which player actually wins their respective battles?
Manchester United predicted XI: David De Gea, Luke Shaw, Eric Bailly, Chris Smalling, Marcos Rojo, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Morgan Schneiderlin, Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Wayne Rooney, Anthony Martial
Manchester City predicted XI: Joe Hart, Pablo Zabaleta, Vincent Kompany, Eliaquim Mangala, Gael Clichy, Fernandinho, Ilkay Gundogan, Yaya Toure, David Silva, Kevin De Bruyne, Sergio Aguero
Goalkeeper
If we are to compare the two goalkeepers in the respective sides, there is a tough battle to find out just who is the best. While everyone knows that Joe Hart can be incredible in games, he does have the odd poor one when he cannot deal with the pressure.
David de Gea has easily been the best goalkeeper in the Premier League for a couple of years now and it would be interesting to see if he does stay at Old Trafford despite the interest from a certain Real Madrid, he however, is the better keeper amongst the two.
Defence
Starting with the left-back slot, Luke Shaw should make a return to the Manchester United team this season after missing the entirety of last due to a nasty injury picked up during a Champions League game. Gael Clichy would be his rival in this position and it is the Manchester City man who just edges ahead of Shaw simply because he has played more games in recent seasons and is fit at the moment.
Moving to the centre-back spots, Manchester United spend a lot of money bringing Eric Bailly from Villarreal and the Ivorian is probably the best central defender in the Manchester United side. To compare him we have to look at Vincent Kompany, the captain of Manchester City but the Belgian has missed large chunks of last season and even the Euros due to injury, thus this round, simply because of his exceptional performances for Villarreal, goes to the 22-year-old from United.
The fight for the other centre-back spot isn’t easy to finalise either as both Smalling and Mangala didn’t really have the best of seasons last season but displayed a few good performances as well. Smalling though was the better player and he should easily be the preferred central defender to partner Bailly.
The right-back position is also tough to decide on as Matteo Darmian and Bacary Sagna had average seasons but the French defender was the better one for a number of games and even though he isn’t the best at attacking anymore, like his Arsenal days, he still makes it to our line up.
Midfield
This is where the real crux of the matter comes to play; the midfield has to be dominating and able to set the tone for the team. Manchester United will rely heavily on the likes of Schneiderlin, Fellaini and Schweinsteiger next season while Manchester City have Ilkay Gundogan and Fernandinho, who could be starring for the side with Yaya Toure.
The Ivorian Toure probably won’t be in this trio in midfield, even Wayne Rooney won’t be here, the midfield should contain a couple of players who can not only keep the tempo and spray the ball around but also be back and help out in defence.
Gundogan can be the man who passes the ball around but the central midfielder to play alongside him would be someone who can dominate games and that player should be Morgan Schneiderlin, irrespective of how his season went under Louis van Gaal.
Fernandinho and Fernando were hit and miss for the City side while Marouane Fellaini and Wayne Rooney weren’t that great either to merit a place or even beat their own teammates.
Attack
This is where Manchester United have outdone their rivals by signing the likes of Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Henrikh Mkhitaryan but Manchester City also have a couple of aces up their sleeves thanks to the likes of Kevin De Bruyne, Sergio Aguero and David Silva.
There would be four slots for the attackers in this team and it should star Sergio Aguero ahead of Zlatan Ibrahimovic simply because Ibra has not played in the Premier League prior to this season.
Anthony Martial is also present in the starting lineup for Manchester United but it would be David Silva who just edges ahead of him on one side of the wing. Kevin De Bruyne would play in the centre of the attack, just behind the striker
The final slot in the attack would fall to Henrikh Mkhitaryan over someone like Raheem Sterling or Jesus Navas on the right hand side of the attack. The Armenian has been one of the best players in the Bundesliga and it should come as no surprise if he does make it ahead of even the likes of Kevin De Bruyne and Silva at the end of the season.
One thing is a certainty, the Premier League will be exciting as ever as both Manchester sides have spent a lot of money on bringing quality players and with a chunk of the transfer window left, they could sign a lot more players come the start of the Premier League season in August.