Wayne Rooney and Anthony Martial left out of Matt Le Tissier's combined Man Utd and Man City XI
Friday 23 October 2015 20:01, UK
Matt Le Tissier has selected his best XI from both Manchester clubs ahead of Sunday's derby clash, with United captain Wayne Rooney missing out.
The Southampton legend, who has picked his side regardless of fitness, has gone for a predominantly United-based defence, while his entire attack consists of City players.
Here's who Soccer Saturday pundit Le Tissier is going for and why...
"The toughest choice was picking the three to go behind Sergio Aguero, as Kevin de Bruyne and Juan Mata both came close to getting in.
"David Silva, like Aguero, simply has to be in there, and Mata and De Bruyne miss out as they're quite similar to the Spaniard, while Raheem Sterling offers something different with his pace.
"Then I'd have Yaya Toure, in what I think is his best position, over Rooney, who has been average other than his hat-trick in the Champions League.
"In terms of strikers, it has to be Aguero when fit, but if I'm picking from the two who will start on Sunday, then it would be Anthony Martial over Wilfried Bony for sure.
"In holding midfield I've gone for Morgan Schneiderlin, who did a brilliant job for Southampton and has settled in incredibly well at United, while Fernandinho comes in alongside him having been brilliant this season.
"At the back I have Vincent Kompany in there for sure, then I did consider Eliaquim Mangala, but Chris Smalling has been much improved and is playing very well this season.
"Then, having not really seen Pablo Zabaleta since he's come back, I've gone with Matteo Darmian over Bacary Sagna in at right-back then, based on his performances before being injured, it would be Luke Shaw over Aleksandar Kolarov at left-back.
"Finally, David de Gea is just ahead of Joe Hart for me. It's a very close one and they're both fantastic goalkeepers, but De Gea seems to make more world-class saves.
"Despite that, I'm backing plenty of goals and plenty of entertainment, going for a 2-2 draw in my Sky Bet tip, with Wilfried Bony to score first."
