This will be the 149th time these two teams have faced each other in a competitive fixture, with United having won 59 games and City having won 40, with the most recent game resulting in a 1-0 win for City, courtesy of a Geovanni goal.

United have recovered brilliantly from their early season slump to be within two points of league leaders Arsenal, whereas seventh placed City find themselves 17 points adrift of United.