Which Man United players would get into Man City’s squad?

New minority owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe has a three-year plan to return Manchester United to a position of dominance over Manchester City. There's nothing wrong with having big, audacious goals, but sometimes reality gets in the way. Sunday's 3-1 derby defeat to Pep Guardiola's side showed United need to climb the Everest-sized mountain to get there.

United aren't even a real rival to City at the moment. Since last winning the Premier League in 2013, United have failed to finish above their league neighbors and while City have won 15 major honors during that period, including the Champions League, United n he's only collected four, winning two EFL Cups, an FA Cup and a Europa League.

This season alone, United are 18 points behind City in the league, while suffering 11 defeats to City's three. City scored 62 goals; United have 37. Unfortunately for Erik ten Hag's side, they also have a goal difference of -2, despite the Old Trafford side's apparent wealth of attacking talent.

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However, if we go back to 2008, when Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed al Nahyan completed his takeover of City by promising to transform a club which had suffered more relegations (five) than trophies won (zero) since he had won the EFL Cup in 1976, the picture was even bleaker for City. They were branded a “small club with a small mentality” by Sir Alex Ferguson and derided as “noisy neighbors” by the United manager, who also replied “not in my lifetime” when asked if City could one day overthrow his club to become the best club. best team in Manchester.

At the time, not a single City player was deemed good enough to merit a place in United's squad for the day. The chasm was so big. But times have changed in Manchester, and the challenge facing Ratcliffe – whose INEOS Group has now taken over football operations at Old Trafford after buying a 27.7% stake in the club from majority owners, the Glazer family – is to affect a shift in the balance of power that will make United competitive again.

The first challenge, despite moves to appoint a new CEO (City's director of football operations, Omar Berrada) and director of football (Newcastle's sporting director, Dan Ashworth), is to create a stronger team and Sunday's defeat against City illustrated the task at hand.

If none of City's players could have made Ferguson's squad for United in 2008, how many of Ten Hag's squad have the attributes to make the Etihad squad today? today?

The painful truth for United is that the case can only be made for one of its players: 18-year-old midfielder Kobbie Mainoo.

He has enjoyed rare success at United this season, establishing himself in the team as a midfielder with composure, vision and maturity beyond his years. Guardiola loves players of the Mainoo mold and, despite the teenager's youth and inexperience, would jump at the opportunity to work with him.

But beyond Mainoo, who else could be making the transition from United to City right now? Striker Marcus Rashford and midfielder Bruno Fernandes would be classified as 'maybe' as they are both exceptionally talented. Yet neither has been able to provide consistent results.

Rashford, who has scored just six goals all season, is an enigma. His superb opening goal against City on Sunday showed his devastating ability, but his subsequent performance also highlighted the negative elements of his game in terms of poor pressing, decision-making and half-hearted defending.

Guardiola demands high intensity and work rate from all his players, so Rashford would anger him. Although the City manager is also backing himself to get the best out of the United striker, as he has done with so many other players throughout his career.

But while Rashford could well break into Guardiola's team because of what he could offer from the left flank alongside Erling Haaland or Phil Foden, Fernandes is too wasteful in possession to succeed at City and he is difficult to imagine him being considered better than the options already available to Guardiola in central midfield, such as Kevin De Bruyne, Rodri, Bernardo Silva, Mateo Kovacic and Julián Álvarez.

United winger Alejandro Garnacho could catch Guardiola's eye and the City manager is said to be impressed by the tenacity and desire of 21-year-old striker Rasmus Hojlund but, like Fernandes, neither would yet meet the criteria for join the City team.

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As for the rest of United's squad, they wouldn't come close to being considered good enough for City. Many aren't even good enough for United. And the same could be argued for coach Ten Hag, whose limitations have been exposed repeatedly this season, and again by Guardiola this weekend.

Ask Guardiola about Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool team, or the players at Mikel Arteta's disposal with Arsenal, and the City manager would hit double figures in terms of players who would be good enough for his team. But the lack of quality means only Mainoo would truly catch Guardiola's eye at United.

Ratcliffe and his team of advisers are right to point out that there can be no silver bullet at Old Trafford. City are ahead of United in every area on the pitch and, apart from global support and history, they also beat them in every area off it.

But until City start casting envious glances at United's squad players, the red half of Manchester will continue to be in the shadow cast by the blue side. It's a long road ahead for United and three years seems an optimistic time frame to turn the tide.