To say much of the pre-match discussion revolved around a left-back Manchester City sold in summer, one of his replacements ensured that chat did not continue after the match.
Nathan Ake is not strictly the direct swap for Oleksandr Zinchenko following the latter's £32m move to Arsenal, not least because he is already at the club and specialises in another position. However, with Joao Cancelo and Sergio Gomez - the youngster from Anderlecht brought in to cover Zinchenko's absence when the club refused to pay what Brighton wanted for Marc Cucurella - Ake has made himself integral to Pep Guardiola's plans in any which way he can - which was a very Zinchenko thing to do.
It should be said that not every game Ake has played for City has been at left-back. Equally, had City followed through with their original intention to sign a Zinchenko replacement there is every chance that new faces would have acquitted themselves there.
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However, it remains telling that Guardiola has gone for Ake at left-back in a number of big games this season. Recently, the manager was purring over the number of duels that the Dutchman won up against Mo Salah when he played there against Liverpool.
There were also big performances against Hakem Ziyech in the 1-0 win at Chelsea, Dejan Kulusevski in the 4-2 comeback over Spurs, and most recently against the in-form Bukayo Saka in the 1-0 win over Arsenal. Not only did Ake keep Saka quiet, he also lost him to pounce at the other end of the pitch.
Include two games at centre-back against United and Ake has become one of the first names on the teamsheet for Guardiola in big games. Having started five out of 30 meetings with Big Six teams in his first two seasons at the Etihad, this year it is seven out of eight.
The more he plays, the less secret a weapon Ake becomes for Guardiola. We are, after all, talking about a seasoned international player who partnered Virgil Van Dijk to help Netherlands to the quarter-finals of the World Cup last month.
But the fact that none of the best attacking talent in the league have so far been able to get the better of Ake highlights exactly why he keeps getting selected. As Guardiola has said recently when exempting him from the criticism of the team, without the defender on the pitch - whichever position he plays at the back - they are not as good.
There was some irony when he then benched him for the following game, but with Tottenham and Arsenal both to come next month in the Premier League it feels like a certainty that whatever Guardiola decides on for those games it will include Ake in the XI.
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