Five bets you should place on Manchester City, Manchester United showdown

At the start of the season, Manchester United were being tipped to produce a stronger challenge for the Premier League title having signed the likes of Raphael Varane, Jadon Sancho and Cristiano Ronaldo. However, despite the arrival of that trio, not much has changed at Old Trafford - aside from the manager - and Ralf Rangnick's team trail their neighbours by 19 points in the standings. United will be more focused on trying to achieve a top-four place over getting one over Manchester City but whichever way you assess things ahead of Sunday's Manchester derby, it is difficult to see United laying a glove on City, despite their recent success at the Etihad Stadium.

Just like punters can benefit from assessing the wide range of betting sites on offer, United will likely take an approach where they will sit a couple of yards deeper during the first half to take a detailed look at their hosts. While City are the clear favourites to eventually prevail after 90 minutes, they may have to work hard to make a breakthrough, perhaps even conceding a goal on the break or from a set piece. With that in mind, punters should consider opting for a draw at half time and a Man City win at full time at betting odds of in excess of 3/1.

We have taken the same thinking with our second suggested bet. Boasting the best defence in the Premier League, there is every chance that Man City will be able to keep a clean sheet on Sunday, but there is an injury doubt over Ruben Dias, who was withdrawn at half time against Peterborough United in midweek. Pep Guardiola has plenty of alternatives at his disposal, but the Portuguese is one of the first names on the team sheet when fit. There's enough doubt about his fitness that backing Man City to win with both teams to score makes sense at 2/1.

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Our favourite bet of the lot is regarding yellow cards. You cannot resist a booking during a derby, especially when it comes to midfielders, right? As it stands, the likes of Fred, Scott McTominay and Rodri are all available between 19/10 and 11/4, far bigger betting odds than they should be given the needle that will quickly emerge between the two sets of players. With the trio having 17 Premier League yellow cards between them this season, and with the likelihood of each of those three players starting this game, this feels like a guaranteed return.

Predicting goalscorers for Man City can be tricky with Guardiola a fan of rotating his attack, but logic suggests that Riyad Mahrez should feature in his frontline this weekend. Despite his stint at the Africa Cup of Nations with Algeria, the playmaker has already scored 19 goals in all competitions during 2022-23. It should be noted that some of those strikes have come from the penalty spot, but that should be seen as a positive. The 31-year-old has been clinical with all facets of his game this season, and we cannot ignore the 5/4 that is on offer for a Mahrez goal at any point during the contest.

Some of the above feels like guaranteed returns, but the more extravagant of punters will be wondering what bigger betting odds are on offer. There are not many which provide true value for money, and it leaves us to suggest a 4-1 victory for Man City at betting odds of 20/1. There is scope for the home side running riot, and there is scope for United producing moments of quality which will get them on the scoresheet. A 3-1 scoreline is available at 12/1, but it feels worth the risk to opt for an extra Man City goal.