Derby day tension as troubled City host hopeful United

Manchester United head into Sunday's Manchester derby at the Etihad with rare confidence, sitting ahead of local rivals Manchester City in the table for the first time in five years. Ruben Amorim's side, buoyed by December's dramatic 2-1 win at the same ground, have shown flashes of progress despite an inconsistent start, while Pep Guardiola's men are still adjusting to a major squad overhaul that has brought back-to-back defeats. With United desperate to prove their resurgence and City aiming to steady the ship, the derby promises to be a riveting contest.

Highlights

*Manchester City's total of three points is the fewest ever collected by Pep Guardiola in his first three league games of a season.

*It is the first time since 2004-05 that City have lost two of their first three top-flight matches (W1) in a season; only one team have ever had the same record at this stage and recovered to win the title – Manchester United in 1992-93.

*City have won five of their last eight Premier League matches against Man Utd (D1 L2), though they failed to win either game against them (D1 L1) last season for the first time since 2020-21.

*Across their first three matches of the season, United had 58 shots, 14 more than any other side.

*Bruno Fernandes has created the most chances in the league both overall (12) and from open play (8), while he has also scored in each of their last three wins against City in the top flight.