City and United will leave no stone unturned when the two sides meet in what is expected to be a scintillating encounter. Man United's noisy neighbours have enjoyed more success in the recent fixtures with the Citizens having won the last four meetings between the two sides.
The fixture has yielded a considerable amount of goals in the recent past however last time the two sides met it was hardly a goal frenzy at the Etihad as Sergio Aguero's solitary goal of the match settled the tie for the Citizens. Pellegrini's men have however have fared poorly in recent games having suffered three defeats in their last five games a run which has seen them drop down to fourth place in the league table.
Their form this time around is in significant contrast to their run last time out after the same number of games played when the Citizens surged a late title challenge, which they ultimately won.
Man United on the other hand have appeared to be a completely different side having recorded three win on a trot following a loss at the hands of Arsenal at home. A convincing 3-0 win over Tottenham was followed by a big victory over Liverpool and the Red Devils were in complete control as they condemned Aston Villa to a 3-1 defeat in their last match.
Man United captain Wayne Rooney who has been very impressive after being reinstated as a striker is eager to give the fans something to cheer about by picking a win over their city rivals.
"You play for Man United, you WANT TO WIN these derby games," Rooney told MUTV.
"We want to give United fans something to smile about when they go to work on Monday morning, we want them to be the ones to be able to give out the banter to Manchester City fans at work.
"I think it's a very important game for Manchester United and Manchester City... for the fans and, for me, it's a massive game of pride."
Man United will be buoyed by the return of striker Robin Van Persie, however the Dutchman is unlikely to start. Angel Di Maria has failed to feature in the starting line-up in United's last three matches and it remains to be seen whether Van Gaal will draft him in for the important match.
City's winter signing Wilfried Bony on the other hand is a doubt for the match after picking up an injury during training. The Ivorian missed City's defeat at the hands of Crystal Palace and Pellegrini will be hoping he can be fit in time with his other two strikers misfiring. Edin Dzeko has scored just twice in his last 22 games whereas Sergio Aguero has failed to score in six straight matches now.
Manchester Derby team sheets
Man United XI: De Gea, Valencia, Smalling, Jones, Blind, Carrick, Fellaini, Herrera, Mata, Young, Rooney.
Man City XI: Hart, Zabaleta, Kompany (C), Demichelis, Clichy, Fernandinho, Toure, Navas, Milner, Silva, Aguero
Man United subs: Valdes, Rafael, Rojo, McNair, Januzaj, Di Maria, Falcao.
Man City subs: Caballero, Mangala, Kolarov, Fernando, Nasri, Lampard, Dzeko
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