Tribalfootball.com's tactics expert Connor Holden reviews Manchester City's triumph against Manchester United and admits he enjoyed the tactical battle, along with the performance of Phil Foden, on the day.
In a game that had it all, two absolute belting goals, a “howling" miss from the clinical Erling Haaland, and a shock halftime result where United went in 1-0 up, there were a few tactical aspects that stood out in this game, let's take a look...
UNITED GAME-PLAN
Let's start with Erik ten Hag's side, and how he set them up to challenge Pep Guardiola's City.
United started the game in what looked like a 4-3-3 with Bruno Fernandes as the “false 9" with Marcus Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho out wide. However this began very quickly to look like a classic 4-4-2 with Scott McTominay and Fernandes being the central outlets, Rashford and Garnacho on the flanks, and a double pivot of Kobbie Mainoo and Casemiro.
The game-plan very much felt like it was to pack the middle of the park, have Fernandes and McTominay coming deeper into almost a midfield four, and having Rashford and Garnacho as outlets to attack the flanks.
But it was actually Fernandes who made the run in behind the City defence for Andre Onana to pick out, holding the ball up perfectly and laying it off to Rashford who scored a rocket of a strike. The run of McTominay into the box is also hugely important in this phase of play, as it drags Rodri away from the position Rashford is arriving in to strike the ball.
How deep United sat
Defensively United wanted to make it hard for City to play centrally, aiming to stop the threat of De Bruyne, Foden and Silva in central zones. This often saw Mainoo and Casemiro dropping so deep, it made the back four look like a back six, with Fernandes and McTominay then taking the central midfield roles, making almost what resembled a 6-4.
CITY SPACE MANAGEMENT
As previously mentioned Ten Hag looked to have Mainoo and Casemiro drop deep from the pivot, trying to stop the likes of Kevin De Bruyne, Phil Foden and Bernardo Silva getting on the ball in central zones. However this left Pep other options to get the ball into these areas, finding time and space to create chances.
By utilising movements deep into the United defensive unit from Silva in this example, both Rodri and John Stones are able to find themselves in space between the defensive line and their midfield line (currently occupied by McTominay in this image).
Casemiro has dropped off with Silva into a wider right area of the defensive line, leaving that space in zone 14 (shown by purple lines) for Rodri and Stones. This allows Rodri the space to pick out Foden arriving in the box, heading it across goal for Haaland to attack (leading to a howler of a miss).
The position of Stones was something that interested me throughout the entirety of the game, playing higher up and finding himself in crucial areas due to the movement of De Bruyne, Foden and Silva to drag those midfielders out of the space for United.
FODEN MAGIC - CROWDED SPACE EXPERT
A key gamechanger for City this season has been Phil Foden, and yet again in this game, he came up with the goods. His first goal was an absolute screamer, showcasing his elite ball striking, however its his second goal that caught my eye, and highlights exactly what makes Foden so crucial for City.
Foden first picks up the ball in a space surrounded by United players, Casemiro in the passing lane between him and Julian Alvarez, Mainoo covering the pass inside, and McTominay offering extra support to stop Foden driving inside himself.
But a quick ball down the side of Casemiro from Foden as the Brazilian lunges allows Alvarez to pick up the ball and find Foden again making his run at the top of the box. Foden, surrounded by United shirts, takes the ball perfectly in his stride, before finishing low past Onana.
Foden's ability to receive the ball surrounded by players, but still consistently make the correct decision means City can play through these zones, his tight ball control and awareness of his surroundings is amongst the best in the Premier League, and he has really shown that this season when breaking down low blocks.
CONCLUSION
To conclude this piece, United's game-plan to stifle City's main central creators backfired as Pep once again had an answer to find the space between the lines.
Apart from the goal, United struggled to find their wide men on the break enough to hurt City, and eventually the sustained pressure from Manchester City, forcing United deeper and deeper into that 6-4 block, allowed for the magic of Phil Foden to change the game, showcasing his elite ball striking and expertise in tight areas of the pitch.
