Manchester City defeated Manchester United 1-0 to win the Manchester Derby. The winner was a fantastic goal scored by Caroline Weir, and it is amazingly similar to the goal she scored against United last season.
Video taken from @awfclips on Twitter.
City had the lion's share of possession throughout the game, and this meant that United's defensive shape was on full display as well as the different ways City tried to play through it. It was a tale of two halves in regards to how City progressed through the United press.
In their defensive shape and in their press, United set up in a 4-2-4. It would occasionally morph into a 4-3-3 if a player from the forward line dropped down to help the midfield 2, or a 3-4-3 if a defender stepped to track the runs of City center forward Ellen White. However, 4-2-4 appeared to be the default and it can be seen in the screen below.
This set up asks a lot of United wingers Ella Toone (#7) and Alessia Russo (#23). They are tasked with not only positioning themselves in their respective half spaces so that City's midfield options are closed off, but they also have to step to the outside backs when they receive the ball. I have included the graphic below to show what the half space looks like in this context.
There are a couple of reasons why United may have chosen to play in this set up. One is because if they win possession with their press, they have a lot of numbers in their attacking third which could result in a numerical advantage. It didn't happen often in this game, but in the photo below was one of the times where it did happen.
The other reason why they may use this shape is because facing a forward line of 4 while trying to play out of the back can be unsettling. Initially, City went around and over United's shape. They used the individual quality of the players in the wide areas in order to progress the ball. In theory this is something United would want to force City to do. Using 1v1 situations is usually less consistent and less successful than team movement and passing when building out of the back. However, right back Lucy Bronze, right forward Jess Park, and left forward Lauren Hemp had the technical ability to win their 1v1 battles and advance up the field.
City also went over the press by using the passing range of their center backs. Right sided center back Alana Kennedy played a long switching ball to left forward Hemp 3 times in the first half.
Center back Alex Greenwood was an important ball progresser for City in this match and her ability to take progressive touches and make passes that break lines gave City the blueprint to how to better play through United's shape in the second half. In the photo below Greenwood plays a great ball to her midfielder who lays it off first time to Hemp.
In the second half it became apparent that City had made adjustments to exploit the spaces in United's shape. More specifically, they took advantage of the space on either side of United's 2 midfielders in the 4-2-4 shape. This time, both center backs were able to consistently find their teammates in those spaces.
As the game went on and legs got tired, United became more stretched and less disciplined. This resulted in City being able to advance up the both around and through their shape as can be seen in the photo below.
City also relied on wide areas in their attacking third. Lauren Hemp and Jess Park were the main chance creators. Both were tasked with receiving the ball in wide areas and putting in crosses. However, they differed in the way in which they created these situations. Park was more likely to make runs into the wide channel and cross from there.
Hemp would usually stay high and wide and have the ball played into her feet. This allowed her to carry the ball and take on defenders 1v1. She did this brilliantly and it earned her player of the match honors.
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