Manchester United have pulled off a quite remarkable victory having come from behind to beat Manchester City 2-1 late on.
This was Ruben Amorim’s first taste of the Manchester derby as he led Manchester United into battle against Manchester City.
Both sides have been off-colour of late, leaving United fans with genuine hopes of a win at the Etihad Stadium – even with Marcus Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho left out.
Josko Gvardiol’s header put City ahead though as the Croatian found the net from a deflected cross.
This was a game short on quality for large spells but Amad Diallo stepped up late on, first winning a penalty for Bruno Fernandes to score.
Amad then found the net himself to spark wild scenes in the away end as United recorded a memorable late fightback.
Bruno Fernandes on Manuel Ugarte performance
Amad will certainly grab the headlines but this was a real team effort from United.
One man whose contribution should not go overlooked is Manuel Ugarte.
The Uruguayan was superb in United’s engine room and constantly broke up play to frustrate City’s midfield.
Ugarte also used the ball well to keep United’s midfield ticking over, turning in the kind of performance United expected when he arrived on deadline day.
Ugarte’s midfield display has now been praised by captain Bruno, who spoke to Sky Sports (15/12, 6:45pm) after the final whistle.
Bruno suggested that Ugarte was ‘outstanding’ throughout, even if it’s Amad who will attract the most attention.
Bruno added that Ugarte was simply ‘unstoppable’ in midfield as United came up with a huge victory.
“I think Manu Ugarte was outstanding today for me, but I can’t take the credit away from Amad because decisive moments are for big players and he was there in the decisive moments but, for me, Manu was unstoppable, he was really good,” he added.
Amad the star but don’t overlook Manuel Ugarte
Amad deserves all the praise coming his way but Ugarte’s performance was certainly satisfying.
Ugarte joined United for £42million as the midfielder left Paris Saint-Germain after just a year at the club.
Ugarte made a slow start to life at United and many – pundits, neutrals and even some United fans – were writing him off.
It’s important to remember that Ugarte had a deep run in Copa America and therefore a stunted pre-season before being frozen out at PSG.
Ugarte is now starting to get up to top speed and it certainly showed on Sunday afternoon with United fans praising Ugarte’s performance.
Ugarte may not be flashy but he does a lot of dirty work in midfield – and that is what United needed.
Receive a digest of our best United content each week direct to your mailbox
