Wes Brown thinks Manchester United have a chance of getting all three points when they face Manchester City at the Etihad on Sunday (December 15). The Red Devils are in topsy-turvy form while their arch-rivals are in crisis mode.
Pep Guardiola is feeling the heat at City amid a disastrous run of just one win in his side's last 10 games. A 2-0 defeat to Juventus in the Champions League compounded their woes and United have a chance to pile more misery on the reigning champions.
City sit fourth in the league, eight points above 13th placed United ahead of one of the hardest to call derbies in recent memory. The last time the Reds prevailed at the Etihad was in 2021 when they secured a 2-0 win courtesy of goals from Bruno Fernandes and Luke Shaw.
Wes Brown on Man City being under more pressure than Manchester United
Brown who was on the winning side in several heated Manchester derbies feels United have been solid on the road. He thinks this could bode well heading into Sunday's game (via ManUtdNews):
“I’m not sure how this one is going to go, I mean, Man City are obviously going to be the underdog (joking). Listen, I’ve always felt that over the last few games, we’ve always turned up a little bit, especially away from home."
 City's poor form has been remarkable given how dominant they've been during Guardiola's reign. The Spaniard points to Rodri's injury and defensive issues but Sir Alex Ferguson never made excuses when the going got tough at Old Trafford.
Brown expects the Cityzens to show improvement against the Red Devils but feels his former club can get at them:
“I think City will be better for this one, but Amorim would have been watching their games and he will know where United can get at them. It’s a derby. Previously, I would expect City to dominate the ball, but with the way they’re playing at the moment, you just don’t know."
United have a worrying recent record against their 'noisy neighbors', losing five of their last six league games. Ruben Amorim will get his first taste of the derby after overseeing a 4-1 win in charge of Sporting CP against City in the Champions League earlier this season.
City were catastrophic at the Jose Alvalade Stadium on that night and Brown suggests they could slip up on Sunday:
“United have definitely got a chance to go there and win. City have been really sloppy lately. It’s definitely an opportunity for us, and I think all the pressure is on City as well.”
A win for Amorim's men would be a massive boost after suffering defeats to Arsenal and Nottingham Forest. They put those setbacks, the two defeats of their new coach's reign, behind them midweek to beat Viktoria Plzen in the Europa League.