Fellaini gets red card, Man Utd holds Man City to a draw

Mourinho's side played defensively to earn a point and keep their top-four rivals in sight.

The referee sent off Fellaini when the match was about to end. Photo: Reuters.

The draw at the Etihad would have been a happier one for Mourinho if Man Utd had finished with 11 men. Midfielder Maroune Fellaini was sent off in the 84th minute after picking up two yellow cards in quick succession, both for Sergio Aguero. The first was for a tackle in the Man City half and just a minute later Fellaini headbutted the home team's striker.

Man City had a chance to win the Manchester derby when Aguero hit the post from close range in the opening minutes. The home side then had to watch as goalkeeper Bravo was taken off in the second half through injury. In the final minutes of the match, Gabriel Jesus headed the ball into the net against Man Utd but it was ruled out for offside.

The draw keeps United in fifth place and one point clear of Manchester City, who have a chance to overtake Liverpool in third place with a game in hand.

Man Utd have gone 24 consecutive matches unbeaten in the Premier League, equalling their own record from the 2010-2011 season. However, Man Utd have drawn 13 matches this season and no team has had to share points more than Mourinho's team.

Carrick is the leader of the midfield that helps Man Utd block from afar. Photo: Reuters.

In the away match at Etihad Stadium, Man Utd only had 30.8% possession. This is Man Utd's lowest rate since Opta started recording possession index in the 2003-2004 season. However, this is not a problem for Mourinho's team as he lets his students play safe and do not want to lose to Man City.

Man Utd did what Mourinho wanted by spending most of the time in their own half, especially in the second half. The team lacked innovation and surprise but were well organised and played hard to make up for it. The absence of two big stars, Ibrahimovic and Paul Pogba, did not give Man Utd many chances to create surprises but the remaining players showed that they were capable of keeping Man City out of the net.

The worst thing for United on the night was two silly fouls committed 19 seconds apart by Fellaini. The Belgian made a needless tackle on Aguero while he was still in possession in the City half before headbutting the striker in a moment of calm.

Aguero wasted half of Man City's shots. Photo: Reuters.

Meanwhile, Man City also had to blame themselves for lacking the necessary coolness to finish off Man Utd. The home team dominated, creating enough dangerous chances to score but the strikers missed or failed to defeat De Gea. This is the most difficult problem for Guardiola and the return of Gabriel Jesus could help him in the final stages of the season.

With the return of the Brazilian striker since mid-February, Man City are benefiting from Kompany's solid performance. The captain's return to excellent form has helped Man City become much more solid in defence. This is a good sign as Man City's defence has systematically made silly mistakes since the start of the season.

According to VNE