[Trizy]

Mourinhos home record speaks for itself. We're gonna win 2-0.

 

[dwd]

There are pictures of Mkhitaryan at what looks like the Lowry appearing online, can anyone confirm?

 

[balaks]

An arm injury?????????????? A fecking arm injury?????????
This better not be true.
If he's pulling out of a derby with a fecking arm injury then he has gone down massively in my estimation.
A poorly fecking arm?????? Jesus Christ!!!

lol a bit harsh there!

Should be a cracking game - really looking forward to watching it. Just hope both teams go for it and it doesnt turn into a snore fest which at times these big anticipated matches can be.

 

[InfiniteBoredom]

Suppose he could play in a sling.

Didn't Beckenbauer once play with a broken arm for half an hour, or I am getting him mixed up with someone else?

 

[jojose]

Didn't Beckenbauer once play with a broken arm for half an hour, or I am getting him mixed up with someone else?

Jamie Vardy won the league with a broken wrist.

I hope this is put to bed. It might explain his lack of game time if he's crying about little knocks here and there. Suppose its those kind of things that are an unknown with that kind of signing. Obviously had issues with Klopp and judging by how he handles sturridge then that might be a reason.

Hoping its Fergie type mind games and the injury is fabricated and Miki starts

 

[InfiniteBoredom]

Jamie Vardy won the league with a broken wrist.

I hope this is put to bed. It might explain his lack of game time if he's crying about little knocks here and there. Suppose its those kind of things that are an unknown with that kind of signing. Obviously had issues with Klopp and judging by how he handles sturridge then that might be a reason.

Hoping its Fergie type mind games and the injury is fabricated and Miki starts

Err...

I wasn't as hot on his signing as majority of the Caf, but this is just silly. There's no point aggravating an injury, if it exists, just so you can play a game that in the context of the overall season, not likely to be the league decider.

The era of blood and thunder hard men is over.

 

[royboy16]

2-2 draw me thinks.

 

[Hugh Jass]

The anticipation is bubbling. Got my IPA in the fridge and the crisps bought. Can't wait. As said in a previous comment if we end up losing 2-1 or something, ok i will be disappointed, but its only one game. Just hoping we don't get hammered. I will be pretty pissed then. Can't wait though.

 

[Mr Smith]

Am I the only one who actually seriously thinks Rooney might not start? I know City is not Barcelona, but Mourinho hasn't played 4-2-3-1 against a Guardiola side since he lost 5-0 in the first El Clasico; after that he went almost exclusively with three combative midfielders and shifted his most creative players out to the wings. More to the point, Mourinho must know that Rooney's recent limitations (poor first touch, lax passing, slow on the turn) are much more likely to be punished against City than in previous games. Mourinho has surely also noticed that Rooney, while defensively well-intentioned, has a tendency to switch off when tracking his man, which will almost certainly will be punished against a team deliberately trying to outnumber us in midfield. Mourinho can't be blind to any of this, and I can't really think of a single tactical reason to start him that would compensate. I think it's far more likely that we see a third midfielder come in, probably Herrera or Schneiderlin.

Am I being delusional?

 

[Eriku]

 

[Hugh Jass]

Am I the only one who actually seriously thinks Rooney might not start? I know City is not Barcelona, but Mourinho hasn't played 4-2-3-1 against a Guardiola side since he lost 5-0 in the first El Clasico; after that he went almost exclusively with three combative midfielders and shifted his most creative players out to the wings. More to the point, Mourinho must know that Rooney's recent limitations (poor first touch, lax passing, slow on the turn) are much more likely to be punished against City than in previous games. Mourinho has surely also noticed that Rooney, while defensively well-intentioned, has a tendency to switch off when tracking his man, which will almost certainly will be punished against a team deliberately trying to outnumber us in midfield. Mourinho can't be blind to any of this, and I can't really think of a single tactical reason to start him that would compensate. I think it's far more likely that we see a third midfielder come in, probably Herrera or Schneiderlin.

Am I being delusional?

I would be surprised if it wasn't a 4-3-3 with three tall midfielders.

 

[BlakeUtd]

I would be surprised if it wasn't a 4-3-3 with three tall midfielders.

-------Felaini/ Carrick
--------------------Schinderlin
Pogba

That could be tough to break down even if they had Kun

 

[Flying high]

Am I the only one who actually seriously thinks Rooney might not start? I know City is not Barcelona, but Mourinho hasn't played 4-2-3-1 against a Guardiola side since he lost 5-0 in the first El Clasico; after that he went almost exclusively with three combative midfielders and shifted his most creative players out to the wings. More to the point, Mourinho must know that Rooney's recent limitations (poor first touch, lax passing, slow on the turn) are much more likely to be punished against City than in previous games. Mourinho has surely also noticed that Rooney, while defensively well-intentioned, has a tendency to switch off when tracking his man, which will almost certainly will be punished against a team deliberately trying to outnumber us in midfield. Mourinho can't be blind to any of this, and I can't really think of a single tactical reason to start him that would compensate. I think it's far more likely that we see a third midfielder come in, probably Herrera or Schneiderlin.

Am I being delusional?

I suspect we'd see Rooney on the left if he does insist on playing 3 in the middle. Hope you're right though.

The lineup for this game will tell us a lot about Mourinho's current thoughts on the squad. We have the firepower to compete and are at home. But I wouldn't be at all surprised if we are unchanged, or just Mata drops out.

 

[Hugh Jass]

-------Felaini/ Carrick
--------------------Schinderlin
Pogba

That could be tough to break down even if they had Kun

If i were a betting man, i would go with this.

If we turn out with a 4-2-3-1 I would worry. I remember we did the same with Van Gaal against Arsenal and were 3-0 down in twenty five minutes. Granted we are at home, but City tore Stoke apart when i watched them.

 

[Smoking_Owl]

I think Lingard and Mkhitaryan will play on the flanks for their speed, work-rate and tactical discipline. Martial has been too poor to be trusted to put in a shift in this game and Mata isn't suited for this instance. If Valencia isn't ready to play after returning late from Int. duty, Smalling will come in at CB with Bailly shifting to RB. Or perhaps Smalling will just slot in at RB if Mourinho doesn't want to disrupt the Blind-Bailly partnership. Hopefully Valencia will be ready anyway.

De gea

Shaw
Blind
Bailly
Valencia

Fellaini
Pogba

Lingard
Rooney
Mkhitaryan

Ibrahimovic

 

[SirAF]

"The stars are going to collide in Tooele Manchester, my friend"​

 

[pauldyson1uk]

An arm injury?????????????? A fecking arm injury?????????
This better not be true.
If he's pulling out of a derby with a fecking arm injury then he has gone down massively in my estimation.
A poorly fecking arm?????? Jesus Christ!!!

waited for the press conference before your rant, you should.

 

[pauldyson1uk]

Am I the only one who actually seriously thinks Rooney might not start? I know City is not Barcelona, but Mourinho hasn't played 4-2-3-1 against a Guardiola side since he lost 5-0 in the first El Clasico; after that he went almost exclusively with three combative midfielders and shifted his most creative players out to the wings. More to the point, Mourinho must know that Rooney's recent limitations (poor first touch, lax passing, slow on the turn) are much more likely to be punished against City than in previous games. Mourinho has surely also noticed that Rooney, while defensively well-intentioned, has a tendency to switch off when tracking his man, which will almost certainly will be punished against a team deliberately trying to outnumber us in midfield. Mourinho can't be blind to any of this, and I can't really think of a single tactical reason to start him that would compensate. I think it's far more likely that we see a third midfielder come in, probably Herrera or Schneiderlin.

Am I being delusional?

He is fit , he will 100% start.

 

[diarm]

De Gea
Valencia Bailly Blind Shaw
Schneiderlin
Fellaini --- Pogba
Mkhitaryan -------------- Martial
Ibrahimovic
​

That would do nicely thanks. Bring Rashford on after an hour to run at them once the game's opened up a bit.

 

[Smoking_Owl]

but Mourinho hasn't played 4-2-3-1 against a Guardiola side since he lost 5-0 in the first El Clasico; after that he went almost exclusively with three combative midfielders and shifted his most creative players out to the wings.

This isn't actually true.



2011 - Real Madrid 1 Barcelona 3

Real Madrid lineup (4-2-3-1): Iker Casillas; Marcelo, Pepe, Sergio Ramos, Fabio Coentrao; Xabi Alonso, Lassana Diarra ; Cristiano Ronaldo, Mesut Özil, Angel Di Maria;Karim Benzema


2012 - Barcelona 1 Real Madrid 2

Real Madrid lineup (4-2-3-1): Iker Casillas; Fabio Coentrao, Pepe, Sergio Ramos, Alvaro Arbeloa; Xabi Alonso, Sami Khedira; Cristiano Ronaldo, Mesut Özil, Angel Di Maria;Karim Benzema

 

[Livewire1974]

De Gea
Valencia Bailly Blind Shaw
Schneiderlin
Fellaini --- Pogba
Mkhitaryan -------------- Martial
Ibrahimovic
​

That would do nicely thanks. Bring Rashford on after an hour to run at them once the game's opened up a bit.

Fellaini is a guaranteed red card if he starts.

 

[CM]

Of course.
Seriously though? Am I the only person with whom pulling out of the derby with an arm injury doesn't sit well with. I know he's our new signing and he did well at Hull and we are all excited about seeing him. But a arm injury?

You're the only person who would make such a hysterical post based on nothing, it seems. Mourinho said he's available for selection in his press conference.

Not that I can see what's so outrageous about an 'arm injury' - it's such a vague description that it could mean almost anything anyway.

 

[Attila]

Just realised Celtic vs Rangers is on at 12 tomorrow as well. Stupid to have two big derbies on at the same time

 

[jojose]

waited for the press conference before your rant, you should.

I just quoted a post put on mate. It wasn't a rant. It was just shock that there was a question due to an arm injury

 

[jojose]

You're the only person who would make such a hysterical post based on nothing, it seems. Mourinho said he's available for selection in his press conference.

Not that I can see what's so outrageous about an 'arm injury' - it's such a vague description that it could mean almost anything anyway.

it was based on a post saying that he was out with an arm injury!!

 

[Uncle Bunkle]

Fellaini is a guaranteed red card if he starts.

He hasnt played himself out of this winning team - on the contrary; so i cant see Jose changing anything with the line-up he's started with so far..

 

[pauldyson1uk]

I just quoted a post put on mate. It wasn't a rant. It was just shock that there was a question due to an arm injury

clearly was a rant with that many ? in and feckings

 

[diarm]

Fellaini is a guaranteed red card if he starts.

20-1 on Paddy Power. I'd get on that if you think it's such a guarantee.

 

[pauldyson1uk]

Fellaini is a guaranteed red card if he starts.

Completely the opposite for me, different player this season.

 

[jojose]

clearly was a rant with that many ? in and feckings

maybe a bit of one. Id have been fuming if he was sat in the stands because he had a took the skin off his elbow though

 

[RedCurry]

We'll need to be efficient in front of goal for this one. We won't have a lot of the ball and when we get a chance, which we will, we need to take it. We need as many natural goal scorers on the field as possible.

They'll play a high line and we need to have players running the channels. The best player we have who can do that is Rashford. Whichever way you look at it, Rashford has to start this game.

Without Aguero, their best chance of getting a goal will be De Bruyne followed by Iheanacho. I feel confident in our CBs to take care of the one striker up front whoever it is but we cannot let De Bruyne see too much of the ball.

They can tiki taka all they want as long as we don't let them in behind. This is where Sterling is useful for them. I wouldn't worry normally about Sterling as Valencia will keep him quiet but this international break has complicated things a bit.

 

[Uncle Bunkle]

Just realised Celtic vs Rangers is on at 12 tomorrow as well. Stupid to have two big derbies on at the same time

Celtic - Rangers games have traditionally always been on at mid-day; so to reduce the threat of trouble caused by fans being pissed-up all day etc.

There's also a very depressing stat of a huge increase in domestic violence in the homes of Celtic & Rangers fans on derby day / weekend, so that's a massive issue also.

They should have played it on Sunday instead though.

Scottish football needs this game big time & the exposure it will bring back to their league; as now, most non-Celtic & Rangers fans will not be tuning in - unless you're Scottish of course; but it's a massive opportunity lost & there must be some other logic behind the Saturday choice.

It could be that the cops want to limited the amount of partying done before the game i.e. from Friday to Sunday, instead of what it is - Friday to Saturday..

The cops have taken a pretty hardcore approach to this game - have a gander at this statement from them:

http://www.scotland.police.uk/whats...r/celtic-v-rangers-saturday-10-september-2016

 

[Faetheshire86]

We are not taking advantage of the height in our team I think. We simply don't have enough good crossers for all the quality we have in this team. It was Chelsea's biggest strength in Mou's first tint. You could pummel them all day but 1 good cross and you were undone. They had good crossers all over the pitch. We simply don't get the ball to Zlatan/Pogba enough. Zlatan should be making short work of Stones and Co with good aerial service. Valencia always gets into great positions but is hit and miss with crosses.

I wrote about this on my post in the newbie forums. We should be looking to get a variety of crosses in to Zlatan and co. Our fullbacks will be able to hit the byline on the overlap, but I would be encouraging our wingers to look for the early cross now and again. I wouldn't be surprised to see Ashley Young on at some point tomorrow?

Would love to see #9 Zlatan, #10 Rooney with Rashford and Mkhitaryan out wide.

 

[Oneunited26]

My feelings entirely. Obviously 9 points from a possible 12 is still a good start to the season but it's the bragging rights to play for.

Not to mention they will say we beat them on their turf without their best striker, so its crucial we don't give them that confidence boost, even if we draw its not the end of the world, yes city can say we avoided defeat at OT without aguero, but its crucial Jose gets his tactics and teams right and does not give this lot any kind of physiological boost.

Fellaini is a guaranteed red card if he starts.

I am not sure about that, it all depends on the system we play, if there is plenty of players who can dictate the game for fellaini in games like this, he has more freedom to not be in the firing line that he has less pressure to control games, and we can outnumber teams. Look at the backend of the 2014/15 season, fellani allowed more freedom in that 4141 system VG played, and he crushed the likes of toure in the manchester derby, because we had the energy and numbers to outnumber city 2 to 1, if we play pogba and fellaini in a 2 man midfield we could get outnumbered so a change in tactics may have to be applied. I think if we play the system that VG used against city, liverpool and spurs in the 2014/15 season he should be fine, isolating himself and Pogba could backfire on Jose, so he has to get his system right

This system could help fellaini, and pogba

DDG
valencia blind bailly shaw
carrick/fellaini/morgan
fellaini pogba
rashford zlaten martial

 

[AltiUn]

Which players aren't fit for this game?

 

[Zlaatan]

It feels both wierd and absolutely fantastic to finally be able to look forward to a game like this again. The last few years have been more of a "hope we do well" and now it's "hope we feckin shred them to bits"!!! The excitement is back and it feels absolutely amazing.

it was based on a post saying that he was out with an arm injury!!

You make it sound like it's a small cut on his lower arm.. You do realise that if you can't move your arm properly pretty it affects pretty much everything a footballer does on the pitch?

 

[Attila]

Which players aren't fit for this game?

I think it's only Kompany. Bbc say Gundogan and Sane are back

 

[edcunited1878]

Finally, the first tactical battle for the managers. It all starts in the middle of the pitch where Pogba has a very free role and there will be space to be exploited by City. And Pep has set up City with fullbacks playing more centrally/narrow above two CBs and with a holding midfielder maintaining a low defensive line/position. These two managers in particular are very familiar with each other and are tactically very astute. I have a feel Mourinho will throw a wrinkle to United whether it's his team selection, although he likes to keep things very consistent when it comes to team selections or overall tactically setup against City.

 

[AltiUn]

I think it's only Kompany. Bbc say Gundogan and Sane are back

I meant for us, I was wondering if Mkhitaryan and co were fit.

 

[pierrethesnack]

It will be such a fotball games with footballs going everywhere. Footballers on the pitch, doing football, and at the end, football will prevail.