Diogo Dalot makes extremely bold claim about Man Utd under Ruben Amorim, statistics back him up

Manchester United have not always been comfortable against Manchester City, but that is how it felt when Ruben Amorim’s side visited the Etihad Stadium last weekend.

Ruben Amorim’s first Manchester Derby ended in a 2-1 victory for Manchester United after a late comeback was led by Amad Diallo.

Despite going behind in the game, the Reds looked comfortable and rarely gifted opportunities to their rivals. Josko Gvardiol’s goal came from a cross which took a hefty deflection.

United were certainly not perfect themselves, and have tons of improvements to make under Amorim, but there were some really positive signs to go along with the three points.

Diogo Dalot’s extremely bold claim about Man Utd under Ruben Amorim vs Man City

Diogo Dalot played 90 minutes away at City as the left wingback for Amorim, who also decided to drop Alejandro Garnacho and Marcus Rashford for the clash.

The Portuguese defender has been at Old Trafford since 2018, when Jose Mourinho signed him from FC Porto, and has had many trips to face City away from home.

But he suggests that the latest victory was the ‘first time’ he felt in control when playing away against City.

“It was probably the first time since I arrived personally, at the Etihad, that we felt we were in control of the game and also emotionally in control,” the defender told club media.

Statistics back up Diogo Dalot’s claim about Man Utd vs Man City

Some would argue that United have looked better against Pep Guardiola’s men during Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s reign. The Norwegian boss won all three of his trips to the Etihad during his time in charge at Old Trafford.

However, the approach was undeniably different to how Amorim’s side played last weekend, with a larger focus on playing on the counter-attack.

That approach can provide great results but also left United’s defence vulnerable at times, with some crucial defensive moments needed.

Instead, the Reds essentially avoided danger against City this time around as well as boasting a similar possession to their rivals. They had control in and out of possession.

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FotMob has the possession share at 48 per cent for United and 52 per cent for City in that game. Guardiola’s men also had just 0.36 expected goals from open play throughout the clash.

The Overlap Breakdown also detailed that City had just 18 touches in the opposition box throughout the 90 minutes. This is the least amount of touches they’ve had against any team this season.

It was not a perfect game and City have been in a difficult spell, but the Reds managed to showcase something they have rarely done in these big games in recent years and it is a promising sign.

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