Sunday People

STAN COLLYMORE

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That’s the good news – which appears to have been largely missed by pretty much everyone.

Yes, the green shoots of recovery are being seen at Old Trafford and the potential in this campaign is now opening up.

The Red Devils are in the quarter-finals of the FA Cup, last 16 of the Europa League and they remain very much in the race for a top-four finish.

Thriller

What would help is three points from this afternoon’s derby – that almost goes without saying.

But this is a game where Ole HAS to make a statement, saying “We are back”.

He needs to rally his troops in that dressing room with a message along the lines of, “We are not running out of here, with 75,000 people watching, to have City spank our backsides”.

He must draw a line in the sand – and, if that means a 1-0 win with United seeing plenty of the ball and limiting Pep Guardiola’s side to few opportunit­ies, then that’s what he must do.

If, on the other hand, it’s an attacking feast of football and the two teams share four goals in a thriller, it will be great for those watching – but, ultimately, it will leave him and his club unsatisfie­d.

For me, the situation appears to be settling down and progress can be seen on the pitch.

Obviously, in the boardroom – away from the on-field battlegrou­nd – it might be a different story.

But, out there on the green stuff, Harry Maguire is emerging as a leader and Bruno Fernandes’ arrival has added craft, guile and goals to a midfield that sadly lacked all three.

David De Gea’s form is a concern – not a worry – as class will eventually tell, but, in Sergio Romero, the club have a more than capable deputy if

De Gea’s dip turns out to be something more. Ever so slowly, the confidence appears to be returning.

And more momentum would be generated by a victory over Guardiola’s side.

It can’t be measured, of course, but if I remember my own playing days, the best comparison I can make came from my time at Nottingham Forest.

Emotion

We’d just come up from what is now the Championsh­ip and faced United, with Eric Cantona and Ryan Giggs in their ranks, in the first game of the season.

I scored and we earned a point. The feeling very much in our dressing room after that was, “If we can get a point against this lot, then we can do it against anyone”.

We ended up finishing third and qualifying for Europe.

And so much of the reason for that was because we had tested ourselves against the very best and managed to hold our own.

And it’s a good time to be facing Manchester City – it’s been a tricky fortnight for the champions.

There has been the excitement of the performanc­e at the Bernabeu and the emotion and effort that went into defeating a spirited – but limited – Aston Villa team at Wembley last week.

There was no midweek rest with a trip to Sheffield Wednesday and this game has come quickly at Guardiola & Co.

They aren’t there for the taking, exactly.

But, if Manchester United are truly making their way back among the Premier League’s big beasts, they need to prove it.

And there’s no better way to do that than by beating the best in a derby in front of your own fans.

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