United and City Share Lacklustre Stalemate as De Bruyne Bids Farewell to the Manchester Derby

In a lacklustre encounter, Manchester United and Manchester City settled for a 0-0 draw in the Premier League, marking the first scoreless derby since December 2020.

City had to weather an initial surge from the Red Devils, which saw Ruben Dias cautioned for fouling Alejandro Garnacho and Bruno Fernandes’ free-kick being blocked by the wall.

Once they regrouped, the visitors found their rhythm, with Phil Foden coming close by firing into the side netting.

Nico O’Reilly then neatly picked out Omar Marmoush’s run, creating a chance that was swiftly thwarted by Harry Maguire, who managed to block the Egyptian’s shot.

At the other end, Diogo Dalot delivered a superb cross to Garnacho, but the winger hesitated between heading and volleying, ultimately failing to make contact.

Patrick Dorgu was unable to direct a cutback from Garnacho on target and fired wide, resulting in a disappointing end to a promising move that was expertly constructed by Bruno Fernandes.

The United captain later saw his delicate through ball deflected wide by Manuel Ugarte, while Ilkay Gundogan’s long-range effort drifted off target, and Casemiro’s attempt was straight at Ederson.

Just three minutes after the break, Foden appeared to have a golden opportunity following O’Reilly’s pass to Marmoush, but Noussair Mazraoui intervened, denying him a clear shot.

This indicated intent from Pep Guardiola’s side, as did a shot from Kevin De Bruyne that eventually rolled into the grasp of Andre Onana.

A moment of concern arose as Dias slipped while attempting to thwart Dorgu’s cross; however, he managed to avoid a handball situation.

Marmoush later had a free kick and a fierce strike that was palmed away by Onana, followed by Ugarte sending a powerful shot just wide.

The substitutes introduced by Ruben Amorim came closest to breaking the deadlock, as Ederson deflected Joshua Zirkzee’s attempt into the path of Mason Mount, whose follow-up was blocked by Rico Lewis.

Zirkzee then saw his effort thwarted by Dias, as City withstood late pressure to remain unbeaten in their last four fixtures across all competitions, though they missed the chance to leapfrog Chelsea, who are currently in fourth place on the Premier League table.

The draw leaves United languishing in 13th position, having claimed just two victories from their last six matches across all competitions, ahead of their UEFA Europa League quarter-final against Lyon on Thursday.