As Pep Guardiola left Old Trafford on Saturday evening, his side having suffered a second defeat in four days and sure to drop further away from Premier League leaders Arsenal, a million points of intrigue will have been swirling through his mind.
Having taken the lead on the hour through substitute Jack Grealish’s header, his side were on course to do the double on rivals Manchester United and put the pressure on Mikel Arteta’s side ahead of their own derby the following day. But two goals inside four minutes from Bruno Fernandes and then Marcus Rashford - the former highly controversial - turned the tide and pulled the Reds to within a point of their cross-city foes.
The way in which Erik Ten Hag’s side managed to stifle Erling Haaland, even with Luke Shaw alongside Raphael Varane at the back, was concerning, but the Norwegian has 21 goals in the Premier League this season and looks on course to break nearly every record going - Saturday was an anomaly.
