Player Ratings: Manchester United 2-1 Manchester City (Premier League)

Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City side lost 2-1 at Old Trafford courtesy of a questionable VAR decision surrounding the equaliser from the hosts.

Following a cagey first-half, substitute Jack Grealish gave City a 0-1 lead when he headed into an empty net following superb play from Kevin De Bruyne.

Nevertheless, Manchester United grabbed two quick goals – with one somehow not ruled for offside – in an absolutely shocking decision from the match officials both on the pitch and on VAR.

Bruno Fernandes and Marcus Rashford scored for Erik Ten Hag’s side to give Old Trafford the win.

Here’s how we rated Manchester City’s players on a derby defeat, and their second consecutive loss in a matter of days.

Player Ratings

Ederson – 6.5

In a game in which we saw the best and worst of the Brazillian, Ederson made a glaring error in the first-half when he was caught in no man’s land trying to clear an over-the-top ball through to Marcus Rashford. However, Manchester City’s No.31 made up for it when he made a great stop to smother Marcus Rashford’s chipped effort.

Kyle Walker – 5

The full-back was decent in possession on Saturday afternoon, however, was caught out a couple of times in the first-half and, crucially, for Manchester United’s second goal too.

Manuel Akanji – 6

Decent until the 82 minute, Akanji was caught out for Manchester United’s second goal when Marcus Rashford found space behind the Swiss centre-half.

Nathan Ake – 6

A surprise selection – to me at least – although Nathan Ake was good today. Both on the ball and defensively, the Dutchman’s performance was solid, but still did let two goals in.

Joao Cancelo – 6

A better performance, when compared to his recent ones. However, Joao Cancelo still wasn’t as impressive as us Manchester City fans know he can be.

Rodri – 8.5

Another world-class performance from the Spaniard. Rodri was immense both defensively and with the ball at his feet. His composure on the ball is just outstanding.

Bernardo Silva – 5

Not his usual self, Bernardo Silva struggled to create or do anything of significance for the Blues.

Kevin De Bruyne – 7.5

Initially man-marked by Fred, the Belgian struggled to get into the game early. Nevertheless, De Bruyne sprinkled his magic in the second-half when he skipped past Casemiro and chipped in an inviting ball to Jack Grealish, who headed into an empty net.

Riyad Mahrez – 6.5

Mahrez was one of Manchester City’s better forward players and linked up well with both Kyle Walker and Kevin De Bruyne but ultimately was poor in the final third.

Erling Haaland – 6

Throughout the first-half, Haaland was kept quiet due to a lack of clear cut chances created by the Blues. The Norweigan struggled to impose anything of significance on the game, but perhaps unlucky not to win a penalty late on.

Phil Foden – 5

Just like at Stamford Bridge in Manchester City’s last Premier League game, Foden was lacklustre. The academy graduate knows all about what the derby means to both the fans and the club, so it’s a shock to see just how ineffective Foden was – especially considering he scored a hat-trick in the reverse fixture last October.

Substitutes

Jack Grealish – 7

Scorer of Manchester City’s only goal, Jack Grealish impressed when he was introduced and has now made a great claim to start for Pep Guardiola on the left of his front-three.