Man United vs Man City combined XI: De Gea or Hart?

RB: Bacary Sagna (Manchester City)

With Pablo Zabaleta still working his way back to full speed, it was between Matteo Darmian and Bacary Sagna or the right-back spot. And although we’ve been impressed with most of the Italian’s performances (we won’t mention Arsenal) we’ve opted for the Frenchman who’s looked back to his best after a below-par past few years.

CB: Chris Smalling (Manchester United)

The England international has been the Red Devils’ most improved player throughout 2015. Previously mocked by supporters, Chris Smalling has now developed into one of the country’s best defenders. He has pace, power, good aerial ability and can play out from the back. It’s no surprise that he’s been an ever-present for manager Louis van Gaal this term.

Chris Smalling has come on leaps and bounds in 2015

CB: Vincent Kompany (Manchester City)

Despite Manuel Pellegrini saying he’s not sure if he will restore his skipper due to the form of Eliaquim Mangala and Nicolas Otamendi, we’d be stunned if Vincent Kompany wasn’t back in for the derby. City are still winning matches without him but they have been against weaker opposition who have still made the Citizens look very shaky at times. You only have to look at the 4-1 defeat at Spurs and the first half hsowing against Newcastle to know how much City rely on their skipper.

LB: Aleksandar Kolarov (Manchester City)

With Luke Shaw’s long-term injury, the inclusion of Aleksandar Kolarov was one of the easiest decisions we had to make. Marcos Rojo has performed better in games at Everton and CSKA Moscow, but the Serbian is such a threat going forward and has enjoyed a decent start to the season.

Aleksandar Kolarov has started the season in good form

Midfielders……