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Sergio Aguero
Sergio Agüero scored the winning goal for Manchester City against United. Photograph: Shaun Botterill/Getty Images
Sergio Agüero scored the winning goal for Manchester City against United. Photograph: Shaun Botterill/Getty Images

Sergio Agüero strike wins derby for Manchester City against 10-man United

This article is more than 9 years old

It was a derby that left Manchester United a long way back in Manchester City’s wing-mirrors and, in the worst moments, straying dangerously close to being their own worst enemy. They had contributed heavily to their own downfall, most glaringly with the senselessness of Chris Smalling’s red card, and they should know by now that Manuel Pellegrini’s team are not the kind of opponents to pass up these kind of handouts.

Smalling’s quick one-two of yellow cards towards the end of the first half had left an air of inevitability about what would follow and, if anything, it was probably a surprise that City restricted themselves to Sergio Agüero’s goal bearing in mind another of United’s defenders, Marcos Rojo, was taken off on a stretcher early in the second half with a dislocated shoulder. It left Louis van Gaal’s team with a back four of Antonio Valencia, Michael Carrick, Paddy McNair and Luke Shaw. Carrick was playing his first football of the season. Valencia is known more as a low-confidence winger and McNair is a 19-year-old who has been fast-tracked from the youth academy after being spotted at Ballyclare Colts. This might not be City at their fully functioning best but it would have been almost implausible if they had not found their way through.

For that Smalling will have to do his time grazing in the scapegoat’s paddock because his contribution here supplied hard evidence of a player lacking the football intelligence that is needed at the highest level. He has previous on that front and it is difficult to find any mitigation for the way he scythed down James Milner when the first rule for a defender on a yellow card is not to dive in unless it is absolutely necessary. Smalling’s first booking had come eight minutes earlier for standing in front of Joe Hart to block the goalkeeper’s kick and it is hard to think of too many occasions in the history of this fixture when one of the players has been so hare-brained – or “stupid”, to use Van Gaal’s description.

Remarkably United’s 10 men almost salvaged an improbable draw during a late, spirited challenge. They showed great competitive courage in that period and there were chances for Robin van Persie, Ángel Di María and Marouane Fellaini to punish City for defending too deeply and not being more clinical with their opportunities at the other end. Yet the truth is that City would probably have been coasting by that point if the referee, Michael Oliver, had not turned down three separate penalties, at least two of which could be accurately described as certainties.

Louis van Gaal says defender Chris Smalling was ‘not very smart’ for picking up a second yellow card Guardian

Wayne Rooney spent much of the game remonstrating with Oliver about his own grievances and, in the interest of balance, there were certainly occasions when United had legitimate complaints. Oliver had an erratic and often bewildering afternoon and, just to pick out one incident, the images of Joe Hart putting his forehead uncomfortably close to the official are certainly far from the norm.

Yet the reality is that City had the stronger grievances. United would have been down to nine men if Oliver had made the correct decision when Yaya Touré surged into the penalty area and Rojo, the wrong side of his man, took him down in the last piece of action of the first half. Fellaini had already got away with a risky challenge in the penalty area on Agüero and he was guilty in the second half of the same again. City will feel nonplussed when they review the tape and Pellegrini had to summon all his restraint in the post-match interviews. He did, however, describe it as “unbelievable” and we can only imagine the volume of criticism for Oliver had Agüero’s goal not made it seem more like an irritating sub-plot than the main story.

The breakthrough came after 63 minutes as United’s unorthodox defence desperately tried to hold off a spell of sustained pressure. Gaël Clichy was galloping down the left and, when Touré played the ball between Valencia and Di María, the visitors’ back line was caught out of shape. Clichy picked out Agüero with a low cross and the Argentinian thumped a rising shot past David de Gea.

De Gea had been a difficult goalkeeper to beat, keeping out Agüero and Jesús Navas, during an opening half an hour when there was not a great deal between the teams. At that stage City had found it hard to get any real momentum, with Stevan Jovetic not making any real impression and Touré taking his time to get into the match. It was Smalling’s dismissal that changed everything.

Van Gaal responded by replacing Adnan Januzaj with Carrick and, in fairness, the emergency centre-half did exceedingly well given that he has not played since May. McNair also acquitted himself well after Rojo was injured sliding into a challenge with Martín Demichelis – moments after Fellaini had been guilty of pulling out of one – and Van Gaal was entitled, for the most part, to recognise his team’s personality. “Our problem is we give the ball away too often.”

Hart had to make two splendid saves as Van Persie and Di María took aim and Fellaini should really have done better with a headed chance. City, however, had accumulated many more scoring opportunities, with Milner excelling before his substitution, Touré and Fernando becoming increasingly influential and Navas striking the post when he had the chance to double the lead.

It leaves United contemplating their worst start to a season, with 13 points from 10 games, since Ron Atkinson was sacked at the corresponding stage in 1986. It was City’s sixth win in their last seven league meetings against United, including four in a row for the first time since 1970, and Van Gaal’s expression suggested that he had not accepted Smalling’s apology. Smalling had been “very humble”, according to Van Gaal, but there was no sympathy here. “Not so smart,” as the Dutchman put it.

Man of the match Sergio Agüero (Manchester City)

More on this story

More on this story

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  • Manchester City triumph in Premier League’s Collapsico derby

  • City’s width should have stretched narrow margin of Manchester derby

  • Talking points: Manchester City ambition rests on precious Sergio Agüero

  • Manchester City 1-0 Manchester United: Premier League – as it happened

  • Premier League: Manchester City v Manchester United – in pictures

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