Man Utd v Man City: Go for Manchester derby goals at Old Trafford

• Pep Guardiola celebrates 500 games in top-flight management

• Rashford has 2+ shots on target in four of five

• 13/5 on Rashford to have 2+ shots on target here

• Bet £5 on a Bet Builder in this game & get a free £5 Bet Builder

United flying high after World Cup break

Well, well, I bet not many expected Man Utd to go into this Manchester derby in better shape than City after the last meeting when they were smashed 6-3 at the Etihad, but there's real optimism for this lunchtime kick-off at Old Trafford.

They've lost more Premier League home games to City than anyone else, but they've won all six since the World Cup break and only conceded once as Erik ten Hag looks like he's figured a few things out.

Marcus Rashford is on fire and there's no doubt the team just look a lot more free withouth the Cristiano Ronaldo saga hanging over their heads.

It's a big ask of course, but a win would put them just a point behind City and all of a sudden they'd find themselves well and truly involved in a title race.

City in need of a Pep talk

Pep Guardiola admitted he felt City would throw in a bad performance at Southampton as they lost their EFL Cup tie in midweek, but from his perspective what better game to bounce back in than the Manchester Derby.

It's also Guardiola's 500th game of his top-flight managerial career, winning 379 of his 499 games so far in charge of City, Bayern and Barca, which is the most wins and best win rate (100+ games) of any manager in Europe's big-five leagues since Guardiola's first season in 2008.

City didn't actually manage a shot on target at St Mary's but that surely can't happen twice in a row, and you can bet the champions will come out all guns blazing as they look for a sixth double over their city rivals in the competion.

City still odds-on at Old Trafford

City are still favourites to win here at 5/6 but from what we've seen recently it'll be a whole lot tougher than the first meeting.

Utd will have plenty of support in the betting as well as inside the stadium at 16/5 for a home win, with the draw priced up at 29/10.

And the Red Devils will be no walk in the park as they've generally been good for a while now - in fact starting with their win over Liverpool in August they've won more points than anyone else in the league with 35 (W11 D2 L2) so their form from that point is that of title contenders.

They're mired in a poor derby run though so this will be the ultimate statement of intent if they can get something against their neighbourly nemesis.

I do think there'll be goals here, United's recent defensive run has come against poor sides so City will find the net, but I also think the hosts can set up perfectly to exploit City with quick transitions on the break.

Both teams to score is a must even at 6/10 - and doubling it up with over 2.5 goals gives you a Bet Builder of around 4/5.

Haaland to hit back? Rashford roll to continue?

Both Erling Haaland and Phil Foden got hat-tricks in that demolition job earlier this season and they'll both look to complete the double - the Norwegian is favoured at 5/6 to score anytime.

Marcus Rashford has been absolutely incredible since the World Cup, scoring in all six games and registering seven goals and two assists.

Despite his form he's still 11/4 to score for the seventh game in a row as he's been poor against City with no goals in his last five league games against them and just one shot on target in that time.

I doubt he's come into a derby game in better form or with more confidence than he will do here though so I'm definitely backing him to have an impact here.

Rashford has also hit the target twice in four of the last five games and with his pace he'll really trouble City here so he's a good bet at 13/5 for 2+ shots on target here - and one worth including in your Bet Builders.

With this set to be a more competitive encounter, that'll also raise the stakes in terms of cards, and with Stuart Attwell dishing out four cards or more in four of his last five then we'll go

Ultimately, City should still have enough to get the three points but this could be one of the most competitive derbies for a while and should be an enjoyable watch.

Bet £5 get £5 on the Manchester Derby

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Over 3.5 Cards, Haaland to score & Rashford 2+ shots on target

10/1

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