Magnificent Man City proved they are streets ahead of Man United in a one-sided derby demolition

If there was one goal – one passage of play – that summed up the difference between the two teams of Manchester then it was City’s third of a first half of football that settled this game and underlined just how unbalanced life has become in this great football town.

As a rare United forward move broke down in centre field, Jack Grealish carried the ball in to opposition territory. 

Seeing the danger but not realising it was his job to close it down, Christian Eriksen took two steps away and then, far too late, attempted to make up ground back towards the ball.

Grealish, with time and space to work with, fed possession right to Kevin de Bruyne and then the magic began.

Erling Haaland grabbed his third consecutive home hattrick at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday

Haaland and Foden both celebrate with the match ball after their outstanding hattricks

City’s Belgian – once upon a time their most feted player – had three options as he moved to within 25 yards of goal. The most obvious pass would have been to his right to the over lapping full-back. 

The second best option seemed to be to take a shot. But this being De Bruyne and this being City, the 31-year-old chose the most unlikely and by far the most difficult option of all.

To reach Erling Haaland at the far post, De Bruyne’s right-footed cross had to bypass two United defenders and then, most difficult of all, find that elusive channel between goalkeeper and a covering red shirt. 

Haaland scored his second goal by stretching to meet Kevin de Bruyne’s inch perfect cross

It had to be perfect and of course it was. Haaland, sliding with foot outstretched, rammed the ball in to the goal and this game was done.

It was a fabulous City goal that said everything about them and much about United too. Everything City do under coach Pep Guardiola is underpinned by hard work. 

For all De Bruyne’s excellence, there is no goal unless Haaland makes the most of every physical attribute he has to reach the ball. 

For some United players, maximum effort continues to look like an option, particularly when things aren’t going well. Sadly there was more evidence of that here.

As Haaland celebrated the second of what was to be three goals away in front of the United section of supporters, his father hugged friends situated with him in the posh seats just in front of the media area. 

Haaland was unstoppable in the derby took his Premier League goals tally to 14 for the season

Manchester United’s stars were easily outclassed by their cross-city rivals in the derby match

Alf-Inge was never as talented as his boy. Nowhere near. He did know how to put a shift in, though, and that is one attribute he can claim to have passed down the family line.

That was the big goal, the third one. This is a United team that remains flawed but it is capable of scoring goals. They were wretched here and still managed to score three. 

So at two-nil down they were technically in the game but at 3-0 the contest – such as it had been – was dead and as the Haaland family did their thing in different parts of the stadium, a number of United supporters left their seats and headed back in to town. When the football is as bad as this then the pub is a far more attractive option.

Haaland, Foden, and Bernardo Silva celebrate opening the scoring inside the first 10 minutes

City were magnificent here. This certainly stands out as one of the best 45 minutes of football under Guardiola. 

With United manager Erik Ten Hag having left his back four dreadfully exposed by fielding a holding pair of Eriksen and Scott McTominay, City had acres of green space in which to work. 

Nevertheless there was something about the desperate hunger of their football that was impressive even to those of us who have become familiar with it over recent years.

Haaland and De Bruyne were irresistible but so too was Phil Foden. Watching the 22-year-old play with such incisiveness, energy and confidence, it was hard to reconcile that with two wholly indifferent shifts contributed to the England cause at Wembley and the San Siro in the previous nine days. 

Englishman Foden scored his first derby goals for Manchester City during their 6-3 victory

Haaland has become the first player to score three successive Premier League home hattricks

That, though, is a problem for Gareth Southgate to consider and then solve. For City, Foden breached the 50 goal mark on an afternoon that stands out as one of his best in a club shirt.

For long periods, United were drowning. They were utterly incapable of competing with City and in playing so poorly confirmed what many still suspect about them. This group of players are capable of winning big games. 

They showed that under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. Still, though, they tend to collapse when things start to go badly. The way they conceded three quick goals towards the end of the first half here was reminiscent of the 4-0 defeat at Brentford in August.

Pep Guardiola (left) shows his joy while Erik ten Hag (right) fumes on the dugout in the derby

These two defeats have bookmarked wins over Liverpool and Arsenal at Old Trafford and the awarding of a September manager of the month award to Ten Hag and that’s United in a nutshell.

Sometimes it does come down to desire. Individual battles can lay the platform for victory or otherwise. United lost far too many of those. Haaland left Eriksen and McTominay in a daze as he headed in his first goal and his team’s second. 

Shortly after coming on, the Brazilian Casemiro was outmuscled by Bernardo Silva. The score was 4-1 to City at the time but still the home team showed the greater hunger.

Antony scored Man United’s first goal to make it two goals in successive league games

United won the second half, which was weird. Their two late goals were cheered ironically by City supporters. Soon Haaland and Foden were squabbling over the match ball like toddlers in a sandpit. 

From somewhere, a spare appeared. Honours even for those in blue at least. Between blue and red, the imbalance has long been apparent and it remains.