I think what most posters fail to take into account is that for the past 6/7 years (arguably longer than that) City have been a better side than us and have generally had the better of us in Derby matches.
Sure, we have beaten City at times in the league but only really by parking two buses and playing on the counter. The only time I remember us actually outplaying City post-SAF was when we beat them 4-2 at OT under Louis van Gaal.
Last night, we didn’t park the bus and we actually took the game to the City as equals. OK, we were undone by a deflected set-piece and a the defeat was confirmed close to the end by a great strike from a 2nd set piece. Clearly there are still rough edges to be ironed out.
My point is though, we took the game to City, who themselves played very well, and it was a largely even game. That for me is far more promising for the future than approaching the game as the weaker side, having 20% possession, facing 25 shots and scraping a 0-1 on the counter.