Highlights

  • The Manchester derby between United and City at Old Trafford is highly anticipated, with both teams looking for a crucial win.
  • The article classifies players from both teams into different tiers based on their current performance and importance to their respective sides.
  • Both teams have a whole wealth of talent on their books, including Erling Haaland, Kevin De Bruyne, Marcus Rashford, Bruno Fernandes, and many more.

One of English football’s biggest and best matches returns to our TV screens on Sunday afternoon, with Manchester United hosting Manchester City at Old Trafford. The derby between the two clubs is one of the most famous and oldest ties in the sport, and this latest instalment could be a firecracker.

City visit their rival’s stomping ground, hoping to continue their Premier League title charge and recovery after two early losses in the season to Arsenal and Wolverhampton Wanderers. Pep Guardiola’s side bounced back last weekend with an impressive victory against Brighton, but a win in this game would be even sweeter.

United, meanwhile, are in desperate need of a big victory after a lacklustre start under Erik ten Hag this season. The Red Devils have been underwhelming and currently lie 8th in the table, so a win at home would surprisingly be an upset here. But with the derby, anything can happen.

Manchester United's Casemiro in action with Manchester City's Nathan Ake and Manuel Akanji

There will be a whole host of elite players playing and on the bench in both squads too, the likes of Erling Haaland, Ruben Dias, Marcus Rashford and many, many more. But who are the best of the best out of both teams, and who just takes up a spot on the bench?

Well, we haven’t backed down from the challenge of sorting through every player, placing them into one of five tiers using Tiermaker. Ranging from ‘A bit meh’ to ‘Manchester Royalty’, we’ve made our decisions based on how important each player is to their side and how good they have been performing lately.

This list is likely to cause a bit of a stir, with some of you believing that a player should be in a higher tier or maybe a few levels down. Be sure to let us know what changes you would make to our rankings. But let’s get into our selections, shall we?

A bit meh

Man Utd players

Man City players

Altay Bayındır

Scott Carson

Tom Heaton

Stefan Ortega

Tyrell Malacia

Sergio Gomez

Anthony Martial

Kalvin Phillips

Jadon Sancho

Oscar Bobb

Donny van de Beek

Hannibal Mejbri

Shola Shoretire

We’ve got a whole lot of dead wood here, with a few players from both teams. These are players who are making little impact currently, perhaps because they are out of favour or because they are youngsters who are not yet trusted.

Both backup goalkeepers from both sides fall into this category, and not many would dispute putting Bayındır, Heaton, or Ortega in here. Although we wouldn’t blame you for putting Scott Carson a tier higher given his City cult-hero status.

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In terms of United outfielders, there are several names that most wouldn’t dispute. Malacia and Martial have both rarely featured, with supporters especially exasperated with the latter after years of underperforming. Jadon Sancho, after his recent banishment following his shock social media post which initiated civil war with Erik ten Hag, also finds himself in the lowest tier now as he is unlikely to play any part in the squad for the foreseeable future. Van de Beek’s move to Old Trafford has been disastrous, making his status here undebatable, and although Hannibal and Shoretire could go on to have excellent careers, the two youngsters are currently not in the same league as the players above them.

There are fewer names from City in the bottom tier, but there are some big ones. The same point made for Hannibal and Shoretire also applies to Bobb - someone with lots of potential, but who is not there yet. The other two, however, are bigger names. It's hard to put Gomez, City’s backup left-back, any higher as he barely features for them, while Phillips just doesn’t get a chance under Guardiola. His move from Leeds hasn’t paid off in the way he thought, and he could be on the move in January, which ensures his 'meh' status.

Handy

Man Utd players

Man City players

Antony

Matheus Nunes

Amad Diallo

Jonny Evans

Victor Lindelof

Harry Maguire

Scott McTominay

Mason Mount

Facundo Pellistri

Sofyan Amrabat

Diogo Dalot

Aaron Wan-Bissaka

This tier is home to players who are good options for their sides, but who are perhaps not as important as those in the tiers above. There are a lot of United players to talk about here, but we’ll focus on some of the bigger names. Antony hasn’t had the impact supporters thought he might have had after moving from Ajax, but now that he is one of United’s few options on the wing, it’s hard to rate him any lower. Maguire’s recent performances see him leap out of the ‘meh’ tier and he could potentially be staying at Old Trafford past January, but we need to see a bit more before putting him in a tier above.

Harry Maguire of Manchester United

Are we being hash on new signings Mount and Amrabat, though? Both have looked decent in spells since joining in the summer, but they have hardly set the world alight either. Mount is yet to bag a goal or assist for his new team in the league, but after a rocky start to the season, his performances are improving. As for Amrabat, while he has looked decent, we want to see more before we move him up a tier.

Only one City player joins the sea of United outfielders in this tier. Nunes was once hailed by Guardiola as ‘one of the best midfielders in the world’, but he hasn’t exactly shown that as of yet since moving from Wolves in the summer. Nevertheless, he's a decent option to turn to when players are out of the team.

Top drawer

Man Utd players

Man City players

Christian Eriksen

Julian Alvarez

Alejandro Garnacho

Jeremy Doku

Rasmus Hojlund

Josko Gvardiol

Andre Onana

Manuel Akanji

Luke Shaw

Mateo Kovacic

Rico Lewis

Nathan Ake

Some seriously good players to talk about for both sides here, with City gradually starting to crowd out United as we move up the levels. Here, we have players who can make an impact for their teams, but who maybe don't have as much star power as some of the names in world class.

United are limited to five players here, perhaps suggesting the need to improve their squad as a whole. Eriksen, despite now being 31, has been one of Ten Hag’s better players so far this season, while Garnacho and Hojlund are both top-quality and important to the team despite their ages. Shaw, when fit, is one of the better left-backs in the league, and while a few eyebrows might be raised about Onana after a few howlers against Brentford and other teams, let’s not forget just how good he can be - that Champions League final performance was very impressive.

Manchester United goalkeeper Andre Onana

City, however, have seven entries here. Doku, despite being relatively new to the team, has already shown moments of brilliance at the Etihad. His attacking partner Alvarez also joins him here, as despite some excellent showings so far this season, we need to see a little more before we label him world class. Gvardiol is one of the best young defenders in the world right now, and he will undoubtedly be in the world class tier later on down the line. Akanji, Ake and Kovacic are all very good options to hand, with the two defenders among the best in the league while the latter’s ability to beat the press and play a deft pass is also excellent. And while he might be young, Lewis has earned lots of praise whenever he has taken to the pitch, with Guardiola calling him one of the best he's coached following a stellar outing against RB Leipzig. A few might think some of these names deserve to be a spot or two higher, but we think there's a gap between them and the players above.

World Class

Man Utd players

Man City players

Bruno Fernandes

Bernardo Silva

Casemiro

Ederson

Lisandro Martinez

Jack Grealish

Raphael Varane

John Stones

Kyle Walker

Phil Foden

Ruben Dias

The best of the best, players who can waltz into any team and make an immediate, significant impact. There are a few from both teams here, although City once again outnumber the Red Devils.

Three of United’s players here are pretty set in stone. Varane and Martinez have struck up quite the partnership in the last year, becoming one of the better central defender pairings in the league. The Argentine overcame initial criticism after a shaky start to his career in England to become one of United’s key players, and Ten Hag will desperately hope he can get back to full fitness ahead of schedule. Fernandes, meanwhile, is an elite creator. Capable of splitting defences with a brilliant pass, only James Maddison and Kieran Trippier have played more key passes than the Portuguese maestro so far this season [FBref]. Casemiro’s inclusion is slightly debatable after a poor start to 2023/24, with his stats perhaps indicating a drop in performance. But given his quality over the years, we’re not ready to remove his world class status just yet.

Manchester United midfielder Casemiro

The wealth of world class talent on City’s books, however, is simply a joke. You can hardly debate the importance of Ederson, Stones, Dias, and Walker to their side, with all of them some of the best in their positions. It’s bonkers to think that they came so close to letting the best right-back in the league leave in the summer - it shouldn’t have even been up for debate. The remaining City trio in this category also fit the description for this tier. Silva, Grealish and Foden were all phenomenal for City last season as they secured a famous treble, and their guile and creativity cannot be understated. Grealish has, harshly, fallen out of the starting XI following Doku’s excellent performances, but that does not mean that the former Villa man is not an elite winger.

Manchester Royalty

Man Utd players

Man City players

Marcus Rashford

Erling Haaland

Kevin De Bruyne

Rodri

These lot, however, are the best out of everyone - record breakers, best in the league’s history, world class and just that much more. Absolute kings at their respective clubs, you might say.

Rashford, while perhaps not at his best presently, is undoubtedly one of the league’s finest wingers when in form. Having notched 30 goals in all competitions last season, he was rewarded with a bumper contract which made him one of United’s highest earners. Having broken into the team at just 17 years old, it’s staggering to think that he already has 124 United goals at the age of 25. It cannot be understated what he means to the Old Trafford faithful.

But City’s quality is highlighted by the fact that they have not one, not two, but three entries here. Haaland and De Bruyne really do just speak for themselves. One is a Premier League record breaker and the best striker in world football, while the other is one of the best midfielders to ever play the English game. In De Bruyne’s case, his status as a City legend really isn’t up for debate. And neither is Rodri’s. His title of best defensive midfielder certainly gets him into the world class tier, but after winning the club their first Champions League, we really can’t say he belongs anywhere else. He will forever be an important part of City's history.

Check out our full Tiermaker below. Be sure to let us know what changes you would make in our social media comments. We know there will be a few.

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