Fulham midfielder Tom Cairney has made his prediction for Sunday’s Manchester derby.
Manchester City will take on their local rivals Manchester United at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
The two clubs have had wildly different fortunes this season with City once again having the better of it.
Pep Guardiola’s side have already won two trophies with the UEFA Super Cup and the Club World Cup and are still on the hunt for three more.
City have one foot in the Champions League quarter-finals, face Newcastle United in the final eight of the FA Cup and are embroiled in a tight Premier League title race.
The Blues are four points off Premier League leaders Liverpool and need a win over United to ensure they keep up the pressure on Jurgen Klopp’s outfit.
United, meanwhile, are sixth in the league and are looking increasingly unlikely to reach the Champions League places.
There was optimism at the start of the year as Erik ten Hag’s side went seven games unbeaten but they crashed back to Earth with a defeat to Fulham last week.
With a massive injury list to contend with as well, it’s been another difficult year for United.
Tom Cairney’s Man City v Manchester United prediction
The prospect of facing City in their current unbeatable form must be terrifying for United and Cairney expects an easy win for the Blues.
“City at this stage of the season, when the daffodils come out, they mount up,” he said on the Footballer’s Football Podcast.
“So I can really see them getting into gear. I think De Bruyne’s had a rest most of the season, Haaland’s been in and out, so I really do expect them to be pedal to the floor.
“What is it, two, three months left? They’ve been there done it before, got the best squad I think by a mile, so I expect them to breeze past Manchester United, to be honest.”
How will the game go?
Given how the two sides have performed in recent weeks, City should easily win the derby.
City haven’t actually been at their best in the Premier League, with only three goals in their last three games.
But they should have much more freedom and joy against a United side who routinely get overrun in midfield.
Ten Hag’s strange insistence on pushing two midfielders forward and leaving one defensive midfielder isolated has seen Fulham and Nottingham Forest expose United over the last week.
If they set up the same way against Kevin De Bruyne and Phil Foden, it could be a whitewash.
