Premier League / Richard Walker / 29 November 2008 / 1 Comments

City may have had it their way in recent derbies, but Sir Alex Ferguson and Manchester United will have a point to prove at Eastlands, says Richard Walker.

You have to at least doff your cap in the direction of the theory that says form counts for little in local derbies since if this was, say, Bolton or West Ham - also on 17 points like hosts Manchester City - I wouldn't really be giving them a chance.

The Manchester derby has produced some fantastic entertainment and some fantastical scorelines, even in recent history. This is now the 150th competitive meeting of the two teams and one, I feel, United will be more keen to win than ever.

Why? Simple, for me. Sir Alex Ferguson will want to prove that money can't buy you love. With their bloated spending power and high-rolling owners and investors, City want the status United currently hold. Fergie, then, will want to preserve the status quo for a good while longer yet. United, you feel, are a cohesive club right now, whereas City - although far from fragmented - seem to have a random collection of players all still trying to piece themselves together.

There's a difference between buying clever and just buying because you can. City's £18m Brazilian striker Jo is a great example, a bit-part player at best.

Mark Hughes has been given unequivocal backing by his Arabian board, however a home defeat to United wouldn't resonate well throughout the Eastlands faithful. He has little choice in style of play, though, since their wins at home to Arsenal and at Schalke midweek prove attack is their best form of defence.

I can't see anything other than a high-scoring thriller here. I'll admit I did say that about Villa-United last week although did mention Martin O'Neill's capacity to chuck a defensive line-up into the mix. Hughes has no such luxury, despite two successive clean sheets. Back Overs at [1.85] in the 2.5 goals market, slimmer than the [2.14] about Unders but, relatively speaking, looking a fine investment.

Am I hot on United? Not especially so for this derby, however that's more borne out of City's unpredictability. Lay the hosts to a [4.7] liability with the Red Devils a few ticks shorter than I'd like to have seen them to back, at [1.93]. The Draw is [3.7] and that's an interesting proposition, perhaps more so for back-only types.

Robinho looks a pick at [3.45] in the To Score options. Rested with a slight knock on Thursday, he'll be fresh and ready to shine in front of the millions watching around the world. I'm going to leave my usual Cristiano Ronaldo selection alone and, with a hamstring doubt over Dimitar Berbatov, plump for Wayne Rooney, at [2.92] to at some point notch for the visitors.

In the Half-Time/Full-Time scenarios, City/Draw is calling me for some reason, at odds of [19.5]. They might just be first out of the traps on home soil. Draw/United rates a [5.3] chance while Draw/Draw holds appeal too, around [6.2] to support.

Be sure also to check out the Correct Score list. 2-2 [17.5] is my particular favourite, with a cover of 2-1 United at [9.0] but there are, of course, plenty of other options.

This game will need a strong referee and it has the best in the business appointed: Howard Webb. Not known for being card-happy, I reckon he'll have cause to produce red at least once so back 'Yes' for a Sending-Off at [3.9] to complete your portfolio for this potentially rip-roaring lunchtime action.