Manchester United v Manchester City: match preview
By Mark Ogden
Published: 6:00AM GMT 27 Jan 2010
Action man: Manchester United forward Wayne Rooney has rivals City in his goalscoring sights Photo: GETTY IMAGES
KEY CLASH Wayne Rooney v Vincent Kompany
If Manchester United are to overturn their 2-1 first-leg deficit, then Rooney must sustain his recent impressive form against Manchester City.
The England forward was unfortunate not to score at Eastlands, but his four-goal show against Hull on Saturday highlighted his goal threat and City defender Kompany must stifle Rooney. That will be easier said than done, but the Belgian has proven himself to be an unflappable performer recently, so Rooney won’t have it all his own way.
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TACTICS
With United a goal down from the first game, Sir Alex Ferguson knows his team must score, so does he stick with his preference for a lone forward or call on Dimitar Berbatov or Michael Owen to bolster United’s strike-force?
City have become tougher to beat under Roberto Mancini, but they still look vulnerable when defending crosses into the penalty area. Berbatov’s extra height suggests he will get the nod ahead of Owen.
TOUCHLINE DUEL Sir Alex Ferguson v Roberto Mancini
Mancini won the battle last week, but can he win the war? Ferguson is placing great emphasis on United’s experience of tense two-legged cup-ties and, while Mancini has tasted big games as a player and as a manager, City’s players lack United’s big-game mentality. If Mancini can steer his team through the nerves and tension, then he can win the war against Ferguson.
TEAMS
Manchester United (4-4-1-1): Van der Sar; Brown, Ferdinand, Evans, Evra; Valencia, Fletcher, Scholes, Giggs; Rooney; Berbatov.
Manchester City (4-4-2): Given; Richards, Boyata, Kompany, Garrido; Wright-Phillips, De Jong, Barry, Petrov; Bellamy, Tevez.
Referee: H Webb (S Yorkshire).
Meanwhile, Sir Alex Ferguson’s frustration with Sky Sports’ saturation coverage of the fallout from last week’s Carling Cup semi-final first leg has resulted in the broadcaster being banned from his weekly press briefing this Friday.
Ferguson will, however, continue to make himself available to Sky for pre and post-match interviews, including at tonight’s second leg.
The United manager has not spoken to the BBC since 2004, when his son Jason, then a football agent, was the subject of a documentary alleging that he used his father’s status to exert influence on the transfer market.