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Manchester United came from behind late on at Old Trafford to defeat their local rivals Man City by two goals to one in a dramatic encounter.
Substitute Jack Grealish headed City a goal ahead from a Kevin de Bruyne cross on 60 minutes but the Red Devils would come back late on to the delight their home support.
Bruno Fernandes drew Man United level with just over ten minutes of normal time remaining. The equalizer was controversial however, as VAR ruled that the goal would stand despite the fact that Marcus Rashford looked to be occupying an offside position.
City protested that Rashford had been interfering with play in his position but the goal stood and United now had the upper hand.
Rashford again emerged as the central figure when he put his team ahead on 82 minutes after he shot in a cross from the young substitute Alejandro Garnacho at the Stretford End.
The derby victory sees Man United into third place in the Premier League, just one point off City in second place while they trail league leaders Arsenal, who have a game at hand, by six points.
A Big Improvement in Results
Saturday’s victory marks a big upturn in form for Man United, who last played Man City at the Etihad in early October. That game saw Erik ten Hag’s side defeated by Man City 6-3, a result that could have been much worse given how the side played on that day.
The Manchester Derby victory means that United have lost just one game in their last 19 fixtures and are still well in contention for the league title and look likely to secure a Champions League spot for next season.
Man City Woes Deepen
City, on the other hand, have been out of sorts lately. The side lost 2-0 in the EFL Cup quarter final on Wednesday to a Southampton side that has been in poor form all season, so much so that they sit at the bottom of the Premier League.
Pep Guardiola’s side looked to be furious with match officials after Fernandes’ opening goal was contentiously awarded. They looked to be similarly angry after the game, given that the goal played a part in their defeat to their bitter rivals.
Though Rashford was offside, he did not touch the ball but the sky blues argued that the player impacted on play in a significant enough manner that should see the goal disallowed by referee Stuart Atwell.
The side face another big fixture in the form of Tottenham Hotspur at the Etihad on Thursday. Spurs are another side still somewhat in contention for the league and are a major challenge to those top four European places so another defeat for City could further change things at the top of the table.
For Man United, they will look to continue their promising form away to Crystal Palace on Wednesday. The fixture should be a decent one to build further momentum, although Patrick Viera’s mid-table side always seem to mount a threat against the Man United.
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