MANCHESTER UNITED go into Sunday’s Manchester derby fresh off the back of a comfortable win in the Champions League, but that could prove to be a bad omen.
Michael Carrick saw his side cruise to a 4-0 win on Old Trafford‘s return to the Champions League after three seasons away.
However, a fan theory doing the rounds on social media suggests the Red Devils could now be at a disadvantage going into one of their biggest games of the season.
The theory is that Man Utd perform better in big games when the odds are stacked against them and the pressure cooker is cranked up to maximum.
And perhaps worryingly for Sunday’s hosts, there is some weight to that theory.
Looking at the last 15 Manchester derbies, excluding the Community Shield, Man Utd have won just five.
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Of those five, only three have seen victory over the Cityzens after a win the game before.
The last time this happened was in December 2024, when Man Utd beat Viktoria Plzen in the Europa League before beating City 2-1 at the Etihad.
On the other hand, Man Utd have been on the losing side SIX times after winning the game beforehand.
This happened as recently as last season, when Man Utd beat Burnley 3-2 before they were thrashed 3-0 by City days later.
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Saturday 12 September
Bournemouth
15:00
EPL
Brentford
Villa
15:00
EPL
Forest
Chelsea
15:00
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Hull
Palace
15:00
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Ipswich
Liverpool
15:00
EPL
Fulham
Spurs
17:30
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Everton
Sunderland
20:00
EPL
Arsenal
Sunday 6 September
Arsenal
2 – 1
EPL
Chelsea
Everton
2 – 2
EPL
Man Utd
Saturday 5 September
Hull
0 – 0
EPL
Villa
Forest
0 – 0
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Spurs
Man City
1 – 0
EPL
Coventry
Fulham
2 – 3
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Palace
English Premier League
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Pts
GD
W
D
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1
3
9
5
3
0
0
2
3
9
5
3
0
0
3
3
7
3
2
1
0
4
3
6
1
2
0
1
5
3
5
3
1
2
0
6
3
5
2
1
2
0
7
3
5
2
1
2
0
8
3
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2
1
2
0
But only once have they beaten City having lost the game before, that being the most recent derby when they won 2-0 at Old Trafford following their 2-1 defeat to Brighton in the FA Cup.
Man Utd have also just once beaten City following a draw in the last 15 meetings, that coming in 2021 when they followed up a 0-0 draw against Crystal Palace with a 2-0 win away at the Etihad.
The Old Trafford outfit have played City once following a Champions League game in this sample size too.
That was their 2-2 draw against Atalanta in 2021, before they lost 2-0 at home to Pep Guardiola‘s side at home.
Going into Sunday’s clash, City are looking to maintain their 100 per cent winning start in the league under new boss Enzo Maresca.
Meanwhile, Man Utd have endured a stuttering start after losing to Hull, beating Ipswich and then drawing at Everton.
They can take solace going into the derby that their wins this season have all come in front of their own fans, and will hope to repeat that despite history suggesting they might have needed a boot up the backside to propel them into gear.
Man Utd ratings v Sabah
MANCHESTER UNITED cruised to a 4-0 romp over Sabah in their first Champions League clash of the season.
Michael Carrick‘s team were dominant throughout and went three goals up before half time through Matheus Cunha, Bruno Fernandes and Benjamin Sesko.
Lisandro Martinez then made it four in the second half to give United a comfortable evening and a thumping start back in Europe.
Read SunSport’s Samuel Luckhurst’s verdict on the players at Old Trafford.
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