Why Manchester Derby is a 'must-win' for both Man City and Manchester United

The latest Manchester United and Man City news and opinion as the two sides meet for the first time this season in Sunday's 4.30pm kick-off.

The Etihad Stadium will play host to the Manchester derby on Sunday afternoon.(Image: Marc Atkins/Getty Images)

The first Manchester derby of the season is upon us, and while it’s still early in the season, it feels like a significant game for both Manchester City and Manchester United.

The two teams meet at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday at 4.30pm. It’s the prime slot for the biggest Premier League game of the weekend, but there is much more than three points on the line.

With every derby, there is local pride to play for. In the eyes of the winning fans, the result will decide if Manchester is blue or red until the reverse fixture at Old Trafford on January 26, 2026.

But this time around, it does feel like there’s more to the game. Going into the match, both teams sit in the bottom half of the table.

It’s perhaps a shock to see City in 16th place, even if only three games have been played so far. Pep Guardiola’s side have lost their last two games against Tottenham and Brighton, after an opening-day win over Wolves.

United, meanwhile, are in 11th position. Ruben Amorim’s team have won one, drawn one, and lost one of their first three games of the campaign, although they did need a late Bruno Fernandes penalty to take all three points against newly promoted Burnley last time out.

For United, the start of the season comes following a season to forget in the 2024/25 campaign. A 15th-place finish in the Premier League table, plus defeat against Tottenham in the Europa League final, means that there will be no European football at Old Trafford this season.

There was, of course, also the defeat against Grimsby in the Carabao Cup. United fell out of the competition due to a penalty shootout defeat against the League Two side last month.

In the aftermath of that game, Amorim appeared to throw doubt on his future.

Ruben Amorim is already under pressure at Manchester United(Image: Vince Mignott/MB Media/Getty Images)

The win over Burnley quietened the questions in the press conferences and interviews, but a loss against rivals Man City could well see them reappear again.

United will hope to take the momentum they had finally built up before the international break into the game. But for City, a win would give them that much-needed momentum and properly kick-start the season.

United's next game is against Chelsea at Old Trafford on Saturday. While United will have almost a week to prepare for that game, City have their opening Champions League game on Thursday at home against Napoli.

City will no doubt want to head into that challenging fixture off the back of a positive result against their rivals and hope the keep the ball rolling. While for United the extra time before their next match could also be invaluable and no one will want to be turning up to training at Carrington this week having to play the waiting game to put things right.

Given the early stage of the season, the three points would also make a huge difference in the table in terms of position. A United win would take them to seven points, the same tally as Everton and Sunderland in sixth and seventh place, respectively.

A win for City would see them move onto six points and into the top half of the table. It would also put them above, and two points clear of their city rivals.

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola will be desperate to beat Manchester United on Sunday(Image: Clive Mason/Getty Images)

Having had the disappointment of the last two games, that would be a massive morale boost to City, both on and off the pitch. Momentum can also work in the opposite way.

A loss for either team would cement a slow start in the Premier League. As City showed last season, it’s hard to get out of a rut once a team enters one.

That run of bad form last season put doubts over the team finishing in the Champions League places. It feels that a loss against United this weekend would effectively rule them out of the title race with Liverpool and Arsenal, even if we are at the very start of the season.

It’s a similar situation for United. A loss would bring back the doubts that plagued the season last year. Morale would be low on and off the pitch, and it could really impact their hopes of qualifying for Europe again this time around.

While the power of the Manchester derby shouldn’t be underestimated at any time, the game on Sunday may have more impact than others that have gone before and some that may come in the future.

It already feels like a must-win game for both teams. It’s not very often that happens in just the fifth match of the campaign.