Gary Neville has shared his honest verdict on Manchester United’s chances against Manchester City this Sunday.
The game marks the 190th instalment of the iconic Manchester derby, regarded by many as one of the fiercest rivalries in world football.
Neville is one former player who knows what it means to leave it all out on the pitch in the most difficult of matches, especially ones where the pride of the city is up for grabs.
The Bury-born pundit only ever played for the Reds in his playing career and had the honour of captaining the side to unprecedented glory, but now, he can only watch on from the sidelines as a fan like the rest of us.
Neville previews Manchester derby
Ahead of the highly-anticipated clash at Old Trafford, where the two clubs will lock horns for the first time this season, Neville said: “I went to the Copenhagen game on Tuesday night, United were really poor in the first half, they were better in the second [half]. They were poor last week [against Sheffield United]. You know, the form is not there – they’re not playing well. So we’re just reliant upon talking about that, you know, they’ll [United] be up for it.
“I would always say on Sunday, for United, if they’re in the game with 20 minutes to go they’ve got a real chance, just because of the crowd and the feeling will be in the stadium. That happened last season when they were 1-0 down then all of a sudden, won 2-1.
“So I think, to me, there’s no way United are going to come out on Sunday and blitz City – in football terms – because they’ve not been at that level. But City are just a bit below par as well, so it’ll be interesting to see. United can bring the best out of City with the football that they play at Old Trafford and last season was a surprise what happened in that last 15 minutes. We’ll see what happens. I’m more hopeful than expectant.”
🗣 "Man Utd's forms not there, they're not playing well."@GNev2 shares his thoughts on the Manchester derby pic.twitter.com/Uf3Gup5kg4
— Football Daily (@footballdaily) October 27, 2023
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