Manchester United 0-2 Manchester City - 5 hits and flops as Red Devils stumble to another defeat | Premier League 2021-22

Manchester City beat Manchester United for the first time in five derbies

Manchester United's unbeaten run in the Manchester derby ended after Manchester City secured a 2-0 win at Old Trafford in the Premier League.

An own goal from Eric Bailly followed with a strike from Bernardo Silva, both in the first-half, got the job done for Manchester City. That inflicted the Red Devils with their eighth home defeat of the calendar year.

Continuing from their recent trend, Manchester United were once again found wanting in defense. The strike pair of Cristiano Ronaldo and Mason Greenwood were isolated upfront for the most part.

The Portuguese ace, playing in his first Manchester derby since 2009, saw a dangerous shot parried away by Ederson in the first-half. But he couldn't produce any late heroics on this occasion after scoring a late equalizer in a 2-2 draw against Atalanta in the Champions League on Tuesday.

This was Manchester United's fourth defeat of their league campaign, a third in the last four alone. They could drop below Arsenal if the latter wins against Watford tomorrow.

Manchester City, meanwhile, closed the gap on leaders Chelsea to two points. Though the Blues can restore their five-point lead with a victory later in the evening.

Here are the hits and flops from the 186th Manchester derby:

Hit: Joao Cancelo (Manchester City)

The Portuguese star has had quite the week

Manchester City's in-form left-back Joao Cancelo had another terrific game, creating both their goals on the night to come up clutch again.

He forced an own goal from Bailly by sending in a precise delivery which the Ivorian converted into his own net. He then laid it on the plate for Bernardo Silva with another sublime cross.

🎯 3 vs. Brugge
🎯 2 in one half vs. United

Joao Cancelo’s FIFTH assist in one and a half games. INCREDIBLE 🪄 https://t.co/EdFXnf4JUW

That's five assists now for him in only the last two games, having registered a hat-trick in the midweek Champions League clash against Club Brugge. Cancelo continues to make his case for the world's best left-back in current form.

Flop: Manchester United's defense

Bailly took little time to undo his midweek heroics

Picking out any one player would be harsh on him given Manchester United's entire backline was a hot mess, especially in the first-half.

Eric Bailly, of course, put the ball into his own net in a desperate lunge. Meanwhile, David De Gea and Luke Shaw were both equally responsible for Manchester City's second goal.

1 - Eric Bailly is the first Manchester United player to score an own goal in the Manchester derby in the Premier League. Oops. https://t.co/2sDhVNj8lC

Victor Lindelof very nearly scored another own goal when it was still only 1-0.

Sure, the second-half was much better from them, but the gaps were still open. Only a lack of cutting edge from the visitors kept the scoreline from widening further.