Manchester City vs Manchester United preview, team news, odds and prediction

This Round 4 fixture, scheduled to kick off at 16:30, will be officiated by experienced referee Anthony Taylor.

The Manchester derby arrives at a crucial early stage of the 2025/2026 Premier League season, with both teams looking to improve their positions after somewhat inconsistent starts to their campaigns.

Manchester City (4-1-4-1, Pep Guardiola)
Goalkeeper: Gianluigi Donnarumma (25)
Defenders: Rico Lewis (82), Abdukodir Khusanov (45), Ruben Dias (3), Josko Gvardiol (24)
Midfielder: Rodri (16)
Midfielders: Oscar Bobb (52), Bernardo Silva (20), Tijjani Reijnders (4), Jeremy Doku (11)
Forward: Erling Haaland (9)
Absent: Rayan Cherki (10), Mateo Kovacic (8), Omar Marmoush (7), Rayan Ait Nouri (21)
Doubtful: John Stones (5)

Manchester United (3-4-2-1, Ruben Amorim)
Goalkeeper: Altay Bayindir (1)
Defenders: Leny Yoro (15), Matthijs de Ligt (4), Luke Shaw (23)
Midfielders: Noussair Mazraoui (3), Casemiro (18), Kobbie Mainoo (37), Patrick Dorgu (13)
Midfielders: Bryan Mbeumo (19), Bruno Fernandes (8)
Forward: Joshua Zirkzee (11)
Absent: Matheus Cunha (10), Lisandro Martinez (6), Mason Mount (7), Diogo Dalot (2)

Manchester City enter the derby in uncharacteristically poor form, having lost their last two Premier League matches. After an impressive 4:0 victory against Wolverhampton Wanderers (on 2025-08-16) where Erling Haaland scored twice, City suffered a surprising 0:2 home defeat to Tottenham Hotspur (on 2025-08-23) followed by a 2:1 loss at Brighton & Hove Albion (on 2025-08-31) despite Haaland finding the net.

Their pre-season form was mixed with a 3:0 win over Palermo FC (on 2025-08-09) but a 3:4 defeat to Al Hilal in the FIFA Club World Cup (on 2025-07-01).

Manchester United, meanwhile, have been inconsistent, starting with a 0:1 home loss to Arsenal (on 2025-08-17), followed by a 1:1 draw at Fulham (on 2025-08-24) and a disappointing 2:2 draw against lower-league Grimsby in the EFL Cup (on 2025-08-27).

They did, however, secure their first league win of the season with a 3:2 victory over Burnley (on 2025-08-30), with Bryan Mbeumo among the scorers. City currently sit 13th in the Premier League with 3 points from 3 games, while United are slightly better positioned in 9th with 4 points, making this derby crucial for both teams' momentum.