21:05 October 25, Man United - Man City: Finding symbols for the derby

Big games are often made more exciting by the head-to-head between the two teams' brightest stars. But tonight's Manchester derby lacked that, a derby without symbolism.

To be fair, in the past, within the borders of England, Manchester derbies were not attractive, because Man City was just an average team, while Man United dominated England for 26 years under the leadership of Sir Alex Ferguson. When mentioning big matches in England with the participation of the team at Old Trafford, people often talk about Man United - Arsenal, Man United - Liverpool or later Man United - Chelsea when the two teams took turns winning the English championship in the period 2004-2011.

Martial and Kevin de Bruyne, the new spices in the Manchester derby

The Manchester derby only really took off when the Arab owners poured money into Man City, turning them into a real force in England. Man City with new stars can now play on par with Man United, even surpassing them like the 6-1 "massacre" at Old Trafford in 2011 or the series of 4 consecutive derby wins in the period 2013-2015.

Absence of big stars

Every derby in recent years has left a strong mark of a big star. Rooney with his beautiful overhead kick in 2011. Balotelli with his famous "Why always me" celebration the following year. Van Persie with his free kick in the last minute of the derby in 2012. Or Aguero, the nemesis of Man United who has scored 8 times in the 8 derbies he has participated in.

But this year's derby will be less exciting due to the absence of such icons. Man City enter this match without both David Silva and Sergio Aguero, stars who have contributed greatly to the team's success in recent years. They still have Yaya Toure, but he has declined too much. De Bruyne is playing extremely well, but it is too early to reach the level of irreplaceable stars like Silva and Aguero. Sterling costs 50 million pounds, but has not been able to shine consistently.

On the Man United side, their biggest player, captain Wayne Rooney, is going through a series of matches with the worst form of his career. Playing as a striker, he plays poorly. Playing as a number 10, he still plays poorly. Although Rooney often shines in derbies, it is difficult to hope that he will have an impact in tonight's match. The rest of Man United's current squad is full of new players, or not too notable in terms of image. Given the strength of both teams, this will not be an attractive derby in terms of individual players.

Waiting for new spices for the party

But that doesn't mean the Manchester derby won't have anything to look forward to. Without the icons, experts will look forward to another confrontation, perhaps less attractive, but one that will decide the outcome of the match.

Anthony Martial will be the name to watch for at Man United. The 19-year-old arrived at Old Trafford with much scepticism due to his huge transfer fee, but is slowly proving himself to be the main man for Man United. He has been excellent since his debut against Liverpool, scoring 5 goals in 3 different competitions, and has left his mark in every match. Tonight he will likely have to move out to the wing again to allow Rooney to play as a striker, but he will still be the biggest threat to Man City's defense.

On the Man City side, De Bruyne has quickly integrated and is gradually becoming a bright star at the Etihad Stadium. The Belgian midfielder has scored 4 goals and 3 assists in 8 appearances for Man City in all competitions, an impressive number. Not only is De Bruyne good at creating goals, he also knows how to score. If there is no reasonable plan to stop him, Man United will be in danger.

Both are promising young talents with huge transfer fees, and have quickly left their mark. Will Martial or De Bruyne have the decisive say in the outcome of the derby?

Prediction: 2-1

According to TT&VH