Match Analysis: Manchester United - Manchester City

1. © Copyright by Athanasios Terzis 2015
Match analysis: Manchester United – Manchester City
United took control after the first ten minutes and never lost it
By Athanasios Terzis
The derby of Manchester between United and City was the most important
match of 32nd
match day. The home side continued their winning streak and
despite the fact that they were one goal down they managed to defeat
Pelegrini’s team.

2. © Copyright by Athanasios Terzis 2015
1st
Half: City started excellently but failed to retain control
Manchester United: United started with 4-3-3. The three men in midfield
were Carrick, Herrera and Fellaini, while Rooney was in the centre of attack,
Young on the left and Mata on the right. Van Gaal is a coach who likes his
teams to dictate possession so United during the defensive phase, show their
intention to put pressure high from the very first moment in order to win and
keep the possession. They left time on the ball for Kompany the less
technically skilled defender as Rooney took up position towards the right and
close to Demichelis. As regards dealing with Toure, Fellaini a player with the
same characteristics with the Ivorian, took over the responsibility of being
close to him all the time. In cases that Fellaini moved forward to put pressure
on Kompany, Carrick shifted close to Toure in a form of chain reaction.
In many cases both Aguero and Milner were in advanced positions. This
positioning created a 2 v 2 in the centre of United’s defence. In order to deal
with equality, Van Gaal instructed Valencia not to track Silva in deep positions
but to stay close to Smalling and Jones. This resulted numbers up with 3 v 2.

3. © Copyright by Athanasios Terzis 2015
When Silva dropped deep, Mata was the player who took over his marking.
Even in occasions that City build up on the left, Valencia stayed deep and left
Silva under Mata’s or Herrera supervision. In cases that Valencia was
dragged out of position, Carrick had to react to compensate for it. So he
dropped back close to the central defenders and sometimes dropped between
them.

4. © Copyright by Athanasios Terzis 2015
Finally on the left, Blind stayed close to the side line as Navas stayed also in
wide positions. The interesting thing was Young’s effort to force the ball
towards the inside when Zabaleta was in possession. Van Gaal wanted the
ball to be played in an area where his players were close to opponents ready
to intercept the potential passes. Additionally Carrick was ready to provide
support to the central defenders if the pass was directed to Aguero or Milner.

5. © Copyright by Athanasios Terzis 2015
As regards the attacking phase, Fellaini took up a position between the lines
and towards the left within Zabaleta’s zone of responsibility. This created an
overload in the specific area because the argentine was many times between
two players. Fellaini together with the contribution of both Young and Blind
tried to take advantage of it.

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8. © Copyright by Athanasios Terzis 2015
Fellaini’s advanced positioning forced Toure in deep positions in order to keep
an eye on him. However this prevented Toure from having significant
contribution in the game as when City won possession the Ivorian was deep
enough from being a danger for United. Van Gaal’s team except for the first
ten minutes in which City dominated, tried to dictate possession by building up
from the back. They took advantage of the spare man in midfield (usually
Carrick) due to Toure’s deep position and the lack of synchronization in the
application of pressing from City and moved the ball close to the opponent’s
box. Then the aim was to take advantage of Rooney’s movements in and
outside the penalty area as well as Fellaini’s heading ability within the box.
The last one entered many times the penalty seeking for the crosses of his
team mates (2nd
goal).

9. © Copyright by Athanasios Terzis 2015
Manchester City: On the other hand City started with a 4-4-1-1 formation
which in many occasions was changed to 4-4-2, both in defensive as well as
in attacking phase. Milner together with Aguero put pressure high as Pelegrini
wanted to prevent United from dominating possession. Toure took up position
close to Fellaini while Fernandinho was close to Herrera. Clichy on the left
tracked Mata even in deep positions in order to prevent him from receiving
free and creating numbers up in midfield. This reaction created several
problems during the second half for City, as Valencia exploited the space
behind him. Zabaleta on the right stayed close to the side line as Young used
to take up wide positions. As regards the attacking phase, City tried to take
advantage of the time on the ball that Silva had in many occasions, as
Valencia didn’t follow him deep. Before Mata or Herrera take over his
marking, Silva was free for a couple of seconds
City dominated during the first ten minutes mainly through combination play
on the left. The first goal came after team work on this side, where Silva
received the pass towards the available space and made the low cross for
Aguero. United tried to react immediately and take control of the game by
keeping possession. The equalizer proved to be crucial as it was scored in the
first scoring chance for the home side. This gave them confidence and United
improved as time went by. They managed to break through City’s pressing by
moving the ball to the free player as Herrera (who moved in deep positions)
and Carrick had to deal mainly with Fernandinho in a 2 v 1 situation. At the
same time Milner and Aguero couldn’t work in synchronization and close
Carrick down.

10. © Copyright by Athanasios Terzis 2015
In cases that City forced De Gea or one of the defenders to make long kicks
the ball was directed towards Fellaini. The Belgian won most of the aerial
duels and the passes towards him were about 80% successful. After receiving
the long pass, the ball was directed to Carrick or Herrera who moved quickly
to supporting positions. The second goal came after a long diagonal pass
towards Young who made the cross after combining with Blind, while at the
same time Fellaini made sure he had taken an effective position inside the
box.
By the end of the first half Pelegrini realized that Toure had small influence in
the game (due to his low position) and instructed Kompany to take over
Fellaini’s marking even when the Belgian was in deep positions. This enabled
Toure to move in more advanced position but also resulted a risky 1 v 1 at the
back with Demichelis against Rooney.

11. © Copyright by Athanasios Terzis 2015
2nd
Half: United continued dominating possession and City
couldn’t react
The second half started with Mangala in and Kompany out. Demichelis took
up a position on the right to mark Fellaini, while the Frenchman was
positioned on the left. Toure stayed forward in order to contribute more in
pressing application. However the synchronization was again bad and Toure
was never the player who put a lot of effort during his defensive duties. United
had control as they dictated possession and they were one goal ahead.
Fellaini continued to work in collaboration with Young on the left while Rooney
tried to take advantage of the 1 vs 1 against Mangala. Valencia on the right
exploited the space behind Clichy several times. As time went by United
seemed the more dangerous team. Pelegrini switched Milner with Nasri and
put the Frenchman on the left while Silva was brought in the centre behind
Aguero in a 4-4-1-1 formation. The 3rd
goal came after Fellaini had dragged
Demichelis away from his zone of responsibility. Mata exploited the space
after a combination play which involved Blind and Rooney. Smalling scored
the fourth after a free kick and the match was over for City. Lampard’s coming
in and Carrick’s forced withdrawal resulted Aguero’s second goal of the game
but nothing more for the citizens.
Conclusion: United match after match has gained stability and confidence.
Several weeks ago Van Gaal watched his team winning matches without
performing well. Now United seems to be in the right path as winning and
performing well come together. On the other hand City showed weaknesses
in controlling the game and in applying pressing effectively. Therefore they
were defeated in another one match away from home.