Manchester Derby Post Match Review

The Manchester Derby is always one of the most hotly anticipated matches in the English game, and in recent years it hasn’t failed to disappoint, much to the expense of the Red Devils. The Treble winners came into the game in incredible form following a comprehensive 6:2 FA Cup battering away at relegation battling Luton Town, which saw Erling Haaland in his usual fashion run riot, putting 5 past a hapless Tim Krul. The red side of Manchester also came into this fixture in very good form, barring their 2:1 home loss to Fulham the prior weekend, they were unbeaten in 2024, only dropping points in a tight knit affair against high flying Tottenham all the way back in January. A huge factor in this turn around in form for United was the breakthrough of Rasmus Hojlund, who finally began to live up to his price tag and carry Manchester United’s goalscoring burden, however with him now joining the clubs ever growing injury list, there was fear this spike in form was going to be short lived as the club now had no recognized fit striker. With Marcus Rashford filling in this role, and vowing to prove his doubters wrong, the derby felt like his perfect opportunity.