Four straight Premier League wins had raised Manchester United hopes. There was a feeling that maybe Erik ten Hag, by rowing back on his Ajax principles, could make United more competitive than had seemed likely in the first two games of the season. With Rodri missing from the back of midfield and Manuel Akanji paired with Nathan Aké at center back, there was a thought that it might be possible for United’s attacking pace to get at Manchester City. Within 10 minutes it was clear any United optimism was illusory: The gulf between City and United was 6–3 on the day and is eight points in the table, but it is light years in terms of quality.
City was embarrassingly better than United. The first half was comprised almost entirely of City attacks. If, for United, this wasn’t as bad as the 4–0 defeat at Brentford earlier in the season or the 5–0 home defeat to Liverpool last year, it was only because City was so obviously playing brilliantly. Phil Foden’s finish for the first, Kevin De Bruyne’s cross for the third, Erling Haaland’s arching pass for the fourth: All were stunning. This was City at the top of its game.
Not that United was blameless. It was dreadful, and being spooked by just how good City was isn’t really an excuse. From the moment after 70 seconds when Diogo Dalot was booked for a clumsy foul on Jack Grealish, United was clearly struggling. Sitting deep, it was just a punch-bag. By the time Foden gave City the lead in the eighth minute, sweeping in Bernardo Silva’s low cross, it already long felt overdue.
