The most awaited match of the Premier League campaign is coming this weekend. Manchester United will host their local rivals, Manchester City at Old Trafford on December 10. Undoubtedly, the game will be watched across the globe.

Manchester City sits at the top of the Premier League table with 43 points in 15 unbeaten matches, while Manchester United takes the second spot with 35 points in 15 matches. If the leaders beat United, then it will be a Premier League record with the most wins in a row.

Only Everton has managed to keep Manchester City under control with a 1-1 draw last August.

However, Manchester United also has a few positive things to take ahead of the Manchester derby. United managed to beat Arsenal in the last round with an emphatic 1-3 score.

United has lost only two games this season, against Huddersfield Town by 0-2 and against Chelsea by 0-1. Both were away games and Man United is on a 40 games unbeaten run at home.

What to expect

It’s the biggest match of the season and soccer fans can expect the unexpected. The match will be decisive for both teams. Man United is already trailing City by eight points and a defeat against them would drag them further away from the title race.

Currently, Man City is the best team in the Premier League and this is a big elephant in the room.

However, United is a potential team that can break City’s 15 games unbeaten record at the theater of dreams on Sunday.

Team news

The neck and neck fixture will feature some star players on both sides. However, United’s star midfielder, Paul Pogba is suspended for the next three Premier League fixtures as he was shown a red card by the referee in the win over Arsenal.

According to City boss Pep Guardiola’s latest claims, their star midfielder, David Silva sustained a minor injury after scoring the decisive goal against West Ham last weekend.

He also claimed that he’s not sure if Silva will be able to play the Manchester derby on Sunday.

However, some Man United fans think Guardiola could be playing a mind game, as did Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger in the match against United. Arsene Wenger claimed, a day before the game, that their center-forward Lacazette wouldn’t be available due to injury, but he played in the game for 90 minutes.

Manchester United manager José Mourinho came for a post-interview after a sublime 1-3 win over Arsenal and said, “I don't want to forget my congratulations to both medical departments. My medical department managed to recover [Nemanja] Matic from a maybe to a yes but Arsenal medical department managed to recover a player from a no to a complete 90 minutes," the Portuguese manager said.

"Amazing, I congratulate them all."

Lineup predictions

Given the Frenchman Paul Pogba will be suspended for the game, Ander Herrera is most likely to replace him for the time being. United is likely to play with a 3-4-3 formation, as they did against Arsenal.

This formation helps United with counterattacks. Their full-back players, Valencia and Young help the team in defense as well as in offense while playing in midfield.

Prediction: De Gea, V. Lindelof, C. Smalling, M. Rojo, A. Valencia, A. Herrera, N. Matic, A. Young, J. Lingard, R. Lukaku, A. Martial.

Pep Guardiola is likely to make major changes.

He can bring back his reliable players, Kompany, Fernandinho, and Jesus, whom he had dropped in the last game against West Ham.

Prediction: Ederson, K. Walker, N. Otamendi, V. Kompany, F. Delph, D. Silva, K. De Bruyne, Fernandinho, R. Sterling, S. Aguero, G. Jesus.

Where to watch

The match can be watched on Hotstar app in the U.S. and Canada. TSN, Sportsnet, NBC Sports Network, and Telemundo will also be telecasting the game in North America. Star Sports will be streaming the game in Asia. BeIN, Sport 1, Supersports, Kwesé Sports, and Canal+ will be broadcasting the game in Africa.
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