Manchester City and Manchester United will meet on a Thursday night in the Premier League for the first time since November 1994 when the Red Devils travel to the Etihad Stadium this week.

One spot and one point separate fourth-placed Man City from Man United after 32 games of the 2016-17 campaign, and both will be desperate for the points as they look to seal a top-four finish this term.

Man City

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Pep Guardiola is a manager used to winning trophies, but the 46-year-old will end his first season in charge of Man City without silverware after watching his team suffer a 2-1 defeat against Arsenal in the semi-finals of the FA Cup on Sunday afternoon.

Mathematically, Man City can still win the Premier League title this season, but they are currently 14 points behind the league leaders Chelsea, whose closest challengers are Tottenham Hotspur entering the final weeks of the campaign.

Instead, Man City's focus for the remainder of the season is firmly on securing a top-four finish. The Citizens will enter this match one point and one spot above fifth-placed Man United in the Premier League table, while Guardiola's side are actually only two points off third-placed Liverpool with two games in hand.

Their chances of catching Chelsea all but ended when they lost 2-1 at Stamford Bridge earlier this month, but Man City have won their last two in the league – beating Hull City and Southampton – to ensure that they stayed in the top four.

Much has been said about Man United's home form this season, but Man City have actually only won eight of their 15 league games at the Etihad this term. That said, Chelsea are the only side to take maximum points away to Man City in the top flight of English football during the 2016-17 campaign.

It has been an up-and-down season for Man City. They have played some wonderful football during spells of the campaign, but have equally disappointed in games where they would have expected to collect maximum points.

Guardiola's side remain in charge of their own destiny when it comes to a Champions League finish, however, and there is no question that they have, on paper at least, a more favourable end to the season than Man United, who must still travel to Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur and Southampton.

Recent form: DDDLWW
Recent form (all competitions): DDLWWL

Man United

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Man United are outside of the Champions League positions in fifth, but no team have lost fewer league matches (3) than the Red Devils during the 2016-17 campaign, which suggests that Jose Mourinho is doing something right at the Theatre of Dreams.

Too many draws (12) have cost Man United the chance to consolidate a spot in the top four at this stage, but it is now 23 Premier League matches since they last tasted defeat, with that run stretching back to the start of October.

Injuries have threatened to derail their season, but in addition to reaching the semi-finals of the Europa League, where they will take on Celta Vigo, the Red Devils have kept alive a push for a top-four finish.

Back-to-back home draws against West Bromwich Albion and Everton earlier this month saw Mourinho's side lose some ground, but they have beaten Sunderland, Chelsea and Burnley in their last three without conceding a single goal.

Just 50 goals scored in 32 Premier League matches suggests that there are still issues at Man United, although only Tottenham (22) have conceded fewer league goals than the Red Devils (24) this season. For all of the criticism aimed at Mourinho, the Portuguese has made his team an absolute nightmare to beat.

In terms of what is ahead for Man United, they will welcome Swansea City in the Premier League on April 30, before travelling to Celta Vigo for the first leg of their Europa League semi-final on May 4. Then comes a trip to Arsenal, before hosting Celta in the reverse European tie.

Tottenham (A), Southampton (A) and Crystal Palace (H) is how Man United will finish their 2016-17 Premier League campaign, while Mourinho will be hoping to lead his team into the Europa League final at the end of May.

Recent form: WDDWWW
Recent form (all competitions): DWDWWW

Team News

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David Silva, Sergio Aguero and Fernandinho all suffered minor injuries in the defeat to Arsenal at the weekend, although it is understood that the trio will be fit to start the Manchester derby at the Etihad.

Silva, who picked up a hamstring problem, is seen as the unlikeliest of the three to make the starting XI, although widespread reports have suggested that the Spain international will be selected by Guardiola.

The Man City boss is expected to make changes at the back, however, with John Stones favourite to partner Vincent Kompany at centre-back, and Pablo Zabaleta and Aleksandar Kolarov pushing for the two full-back positions.

Gabriel Jesus is expected to make the squad after recovering from a broken foot, although the Brazilian could start on the bench, with Aguero, who has netted in his last five Premier League appearances, leading the line once again.

As for Man United, Mourinho has confirmed that Paul Pogba will miss the Manchester derby after suffering an injury in the latter stages of Sunday's 2-0 win over Burnley in the Premier League.

The Frenchman's absence means that Michael Carrick is expected to start alongside Marouane Fellaini and Ander Herrera in central midfield, with Marcus Rashford and Henrikh Mkhitaryan returning to the three-pronged attack.

Daley Blind will continue alongside Eric Bailly at centre-back due to the absences of Marcos Rojo, Chris Smalling and Phil Jones, while leading scorer Zlatan Ibrahimovic will miss the remainder of the season with knee ligament damage.

Anthony Martial and Wayne Rooney both impressed at the weekend, but the pair are expected to start on the bench.

Man City possible starting lineup:
Bravo; Zabaleta, Stones, Kompany, Kolarov; Fernandinho; Sane, Silva, De Bruyne, Sterling; Aguero

Man United possible starting lineup:
De Gea; Valencia, Bailly, Blind, Shaw; Herrera, Fellaini, Carrick; Mkhitaryan, Rashford, Lingard

Head To Head

Thursday will be the 174th meeting between these two teams in all competitions. Man United lead the head-to-head 72 victories to Man City's 50, while the remaining 51 fixtures have finished level.

In the league, meanwhile, Man United have won 33 Manchester derbies to Man City's 19, although Man City recorded a 2-1 victory when they travelled to Old Trafford earlier this season.

Indeed, Mourinho's first league defeat as Man United boss came earlier in the campaign when Man City emerged victorious at Old Trafford. It was the Red Devils that won the corresponding league game during the 2015-16 campaign, however, with Rashford grabbing the only goal in a 1-0 victory.

The last time that these two teams met on a Thursday in the Premier League was in November 1994, with Man United recording a 5-0 victory courtesy of a hat-trick from Andrei Kanchelskis, and goals from Eric Cantona and Mark Hughes.

We say: Man City 1-1 Man United

Neither Guardiola nor Mourinho will want to lose on Thursday, and that means that the two teams could end up cancelling each other out. In the grand scheme of things, a point would not be the worst result for either side, and we are backing the pair to share the spoils in a tight and cagey affair at the Etihad Stadium.

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