Early Christmas gift for anyone?

Man.City is going through the worst crisis in the coaching career of coach Pep Guardiola – who announced not long ago that Man.City is the last club he will lead. Pep and his team only won 1 and lost 7 in the last 10 matches (all tournaments combined). If you lose again, it’s still a crisis, nothing more, nothing less. On the contrary, if you win, it is of course a timely rise. People will say: even in the most difficult circumstances, Man.City still beat MU in the derby. And that is the bravery of a strong team that knows how to win at the right time!

With coach Ruben Amorim’s MU, the story is the same, with the only small difference being that MU is both underestimated and has to be a guest. Anyway, any outcome is possible in this match in which Man.City is classified as the “upper odds”. How can we judge from a purely professional perspective when Mr. Pep’s team is no longer themselves?

Seen as the savior, Mr. Amorim was welcomed to Old Trafford with a carpet, only to reap the same score as the recently fired coach Erik ten Hag, in 4 rounds. Still knowing that MU cannot be improved overnight, but Amorim can bring MU an important victory in a specific match, to strengthen spirit and confidence. Assuming he could choose an opponent, Amorim probably couldn’t think of any other team: “Let’s bring defending champion Man.City here”! How famous was Amorim when he led Sporting to a 4-1 win over Man City in the Champions League this season?

In terms of strength, both sides have injured players at this time, but Man.City’s disadvantage is greater because everyone believes that midfielder Rodri’s absence is the overarching cause of the defeat. Most of the injured players who cannot play are defensive players (Nathan Ake, Manuel Akanji, Rico Lewis of Man.City; Luke Shaw, Victor Lindelof of MU). Combined with the “kick to win” mentality, this derby could be an exciting rain of goals. Yes, both sides must aim for victory, to save… everything. On the contrary, in case they have to pay the price for their goal of victory with a defeat, they have nothing to lose!

Newcastle – Leicester is also a match worth watching, mainly in the detail that Ruud Van Nistelrooy is starting quite successfully when leading Leicester. Before Leicester, Van Nistelrooy also made an impression when leading MU as interim coach.

In this round, top team Liverpool takes on Fulham at home. While Liverpool is progressing like a storm, and Man.City suddenly declines, another phenomenon is quietly developing in the Premier League. That is Chelsea’s silent rise. Coach Enzo Maresca’s team has risen to 2nd place, only 4 points behind Liverpool (despite playing 1 more match). If Chelsea can win against dark horse Brentford in this round, they can do big things. That will be the 7th consecutive win (counting all tournaments). And Chelsea’s next opponents in the Premier League are Everton, Fulham, Ipswich, Crystal Palace, Bournemouth, Wolverhampton (4 of these 6 teams are currently in the bottom 6 teams).