Jamie Jackson’s match report has dropped so I’ll leave you with that. Thanks for your company - goodnight!

City are only two points clear at the top but it’s becoming increasingly hard to make a case for anyone else winning the league. And it’s impossible to make a case for United winning it.

If you want to follow a genuinely competitive derby...

90+2 min The magnificent David Silva gets a standing ovation as he is replaced by Phil Foden.

90+1 min Young’s deep cross is flapped away by Ederson, an important interception with Fellaini waiting behind him. There will be three added minutes.

90 min There were - and you’ll like this - 44 City passes in the build-up to that goal. They weren’t just passing the time after all.

88 min David Silva plays a through pass towards Sane, who is flattened by Smalling just outside the area. The referee waves play on. I thought that was a foul, though you could also argue it was a legitimate hand-off.

City kept the ball for an age before the goal. Eventually Bernardo Silva coaxed a nice pass over the defence to find Gundogan, who escaped the negligent Matic near the penalty spot. His first touch was lovely, killing the ball dead, and with his second he forced the ball past De Gea.

85 min Few teams are as good at passing the time at City, and United’s desperation to win it back is such that Romelu Lukaku breaks into a jog.

83 min A bit of pressure down the left from United. Mata’s snapshot is blocked by a defender and then Matic loses the ball for once.

81 min City pass the time for about 90 seconds before Gundogan shoots well wide from 25 yards.

80 min City continue to frustrate United by keeping the ball away from them. Not even a Jose Mourinho side can score a late equaliser without the ball.

77 min The crowd’s discomfort is more because of last year than how this game is going. United haven’t really created anything all day, with the penalty coming from an Ederson mistake.

76 min Sterling’s superb through pass towards Sane is vitally intercepted by the sliding Ashley Young.

75 min Another City change: Ilkay Gundogan comes on for Sergio Aguero. Sterling will go to centre forward and Bernardo Silva to the right.

74 min Sanchez is fouled by Mendy, which allows United to send all their big lumps forward. City clear the free-kick and break four on four. Sterling finds Sane, who wafts wastefully over the bar from 20 yards.

73 min United keep the ball for over a minute, probing for an opening. When the ball goes out of play, they make a double change: Mata and Sanchez replace Herrera and Rashford.

70 min Fernandinho’s placed long-range shot is easily saved by De Gea. United are struggling to get out when they have the ball.

70 min United have decent options on the bench, including Mata and Sanchez. I’m sure both will come on if it stays at 2-1.

69 min Sane’s free-kick is nutted away by Lukaku.

68 min Ederson’s aimless hoof finds Sane, who is fouled near the corner flag by Young.

67 min City had a wobble after Martial’s goal but they are controlling the match again now. Sane beats three players and finds Fernandinho, whose stinging, deflected shot is beautifully held by De Gea as he plunges to his right.

66 min “How many fouls does Fernandinho have to commit before referees card him, commentators mention him or MBMers point it out?” sniffs Sachin Paul. “Never seen a player get away with stopping so many counter attacks through fouls.”

It’s a shame we didn’t mention it twice in the first half.

65 min The next goal in this game isn’t big, it’s bloody epochal.

64 min An excellent spell for City, with Lindelof making a couple of important clearances at the near post.

63 min “Anyone like Aguero’s new hair colour?” says Ezra Finkelstein. “Trying to channel Neymar I think.”

I thought he was trying to channel Martin Crane.

62 min City try to calm everything down with some patient possession. They are also making a change, with Leroy Sane replacing Riyad Mahrez. I suspect Sterling will move across to the right.

60 min All of a sudden the City fans - who were oléing at 2-0 - sound extremely nervous.

I think that was Lukaku’s first touch. It was really poor goalkeeping from Ederson, who came a long way from his line to make a needless challenge. Lukaku was going nowhere.

57 min United make their first substitution, with Romelu Lukaku replacing Jesse Lingard. Rashford will move to the right wing.

55 min: Sterling misses a great chance. Fernandinho put him through with a brilliant half-volleyed pass over the top. Sterling took the ball down nicely but then tried to turn back inside on the corner of the six-yard box and was crowded out.

53 min United were 2-0 down on this ground last season and won the game. But - insight time - it’s not really a sustainable model.

50 min “Neutral for this game but have to say I could watch David Silva play football all day,” says Colin Livingstone. “Not sure I’ve seen any player in the PL with quite the same combination of intelligence and ability.”

What’s even more impressive is that he’s playing like this in a relatively new position.

49 min I suppose De Gea could have saved that - it went straight above his head - but he was hit with ferocious power from reasonably close range.

This is a sizzling finish from Sergio Aguero. He collected the ball 40 yards out and charged towards the United area, moving slightly to the right in the process. Then he fronted up Lindelof, played a neat one-two with Mahrez and thundered a rising drive that went straight through the hands of De Gea at the near post.

47 min “Mahrez doesn’t quite fit, he holds the ball too long and isn’t quick enough in his passing,” says Will Oliver. “Or am I wrong?”

I know what you mean. He’s a glorious player but he’s not a perfect fit for a Pep Guardiola team. But then nor was Raheem Sterling, and looky what a couple of years’ training did for him. It’ll be really interesting to see how Mahrez develops in the next year or two.

46 min Peep peep! United get the second half under way.

“Since that whack to the head, Herrera has been all over the place,” says Benjamin Yeo. “I wonder if he the cursory check by the Utd medical crew was really enough. Herrera had to hold on to the referee to stay upright after his knock and he has been a mess since his on-field ‘check-up’. What do you think about the on-field concussion procedures?”

I’m no expert – I know! – but they seem almost entirely inadequate. That said, I don’t think he’s concussed today, he’s just having a bit of a Karius.

Half-time reading

44 min Bernardo Silva plays an imaginative pass behind Smalling for Aguero, who crunches a shot into the side netting from a very tight angle.

44 min City’s fans appeal for a penalty when Fernandinho’s header hits a United defender in the area. We haven’t seen a replay so - I’ll be honest - I haven’t a clue what happened.

42 min Shaw is booked for an inappropriate wrestling manoeuvre on Mahrez.

40 min It’s an odd thing to say given the scoreline but I think United will be the happier team at half-time if it stays like this. They are right in the game, which looked unlikely after the first 15 minutes.

39 min Rashford plays a fine reverse pass for Martial, who takes a fraction too long on the ball and allows Fernandinho to block his shot. That was half a chance.

38 min “‘Fernandinho is fortunate to get away without a yellow card for a cynical foul’,” says Rob Glynn. “Copy this to save time for the next Man City game.”

You’re just jealous of Project Longbow mate.

36 min As Gary Neville points out on Sky, the pace of the game has really dropped. That’s a surprise as a quicker pace suits City rather than United.

35 min Sterling plays a one-two with Aguero and hits an instinctive shot that deflects off Lindelof and through to De Gea. Sterling has been City’s best player so far along with David Silva.

33 min Bernardo Silva is booked for a lunge at Rashford.

32 min “That entry in the 25th minute,” says Michael Garton. “’Deep dross’ is the perfect term for the type of football United have been playing in recent years.”

I’m nothing if not unwittingly poetic.

31 min Laporte wafts a long-range shot into orbit. City haven’t been at their best in the last 15 minutes or so.

29 min Fellaini is having an outstanding game defensively.

26 min Stones is down. He blocked that Martial shot with, well, his stones. After a minute or so on his haunches, he’s fine to continue.

25 min Martial’s shot from 20 yards is blocked by Stones. Moments later, Smalling loops a header onto the roof of the net from Lingard’s deep dross. It wasn’t much of a chance, with no real pace on the ball. United are looking better after a torrid start.

25 min Fernandinho is fortunate to get away without a yellow card for a cynical foul on Lingard.

24 min Herrera again has his pocket picked, this time by Aguero on the halfway line. Aguero runs to the edge of the area before slipping as he tries to shoot.

22 min The game has calmed down slightly after that blistering start. City are still very much in control.

21 min I can understand why Mourinho preferred the mobility of Lingard, but United are missing Juan Mata’s composure in possession. It looks like a hot potato whenever they get it.

20 min “City may be money dopers,” says Ian Copestake, “but they sure work hard for their inflated coin.”

18 min United enjoy a bit of possession for the first time before Martial loses the ball to Walker.

17 min Sterling nicks the ball off Herrera, who redeems himself with a fine challenge in his own area. This has been the most exhilarating start from City.

16 min Fellaini wins a corner for United. Rashford’s inswinger is headed away by Fernandinho.

13 min Mahrez finds Bernardo Silva, whose shot is blocked desperately by Smalling. United are in serious danger of being taken apart here.

The goal was created by Sterling, who teased Young on the left and curled a superb deep cross that bounced up behind Shaw to find Bernardo Silva. He helped the ball back across goal towards Aguero, who fell over under challenge from Smalling. City were in the process of appealing for a penalty when David Silva collected the loose ball and rammed it into the net from close range.

12 min City have had 87 per cent of the possession so far.

11 min I’m not sure Martial or Rashford have had a kick yet. Fellaini, meanwhile, is doing some vital defensive work for United.

9 min Aguero’s header is cleared off the line by Young, though he’d been penalised for a foul on Herrera.

8 min Mahrez teases Shaw and wins a corner. United are under so much pressure already.

7 min City look in the mood to not just beat United but give them a hiding.

6 min David Silva clips a lovely pass over Young to find Sterling, who takes the ball down nicely on the run and hits a shot that is deflected behind by Smalling. That move started with a chipped pass over Martial by the keeper Ederson.

6 min The match has started exactly as we expected, with City completely dominating possession.

4 min That was a chance for City. A sweet first-time pass from Fernandino released David Silva on the left of the box. He squared the ball perfectly for Aguero, who got his feet in a tangle and completely missed the ball 10 yards from goal.

3 min “Come on, Jose!” says Matt Dony. “It’s a rare day I find myself supporting Everton and United. Very happy with Chelsea being limited to one point, now I’d love to see a Jose special; frustrating Pep and pooing merrily all over the idea of entertainment, before flipping off the entire stadium and attributing the victory to the fact that Pogba wasn’t playing. Ok, so maybe none of that will happen. But, it’s Jose. You just never know...”

We’ll miss him when he’s gone.

2 min City keep the ball for the first 75 seconds before Bernardo Silva lashes a long-range shot just wide. De Gea had it covered I think but that’s quite a start from City. United’s first touch (I think) will be a De Gea goalkick.

1 min Peep peep! City kick off from left to right. They are in blue; United are in red.

“Correction....” says David Hackwood. “David Moyes did not buy Phil Jones. It was Sir Alex who bought Mr Jones, who was a very promising centre back at the time.”

Thanks David. Me and my memory!

Sir Alex Ferguson is at the game today and looks in good form. He actually bought more members of this United starting XI than Jose Mourinho.

The players emerge from the tunnel to the usual strains of Fatboy Slim’s Right Here, Right Now. Before the match, everyone in the ground will pay tribute to those who died during the First World War.

Brazen pluggery

Have you seen this film about football’s greatest fraud? If not, do yourself a favour.

“That is an expensively assembled set of bums warming the United bench,” says Phil Grey. “Phil Jones «only» cost £16.5m seven years ago, but what about the others?”

I still can’t believe David Moyes spent that much on Phil Jones.

An email! “The Manchester Derby, and not even the derby match I’m looking forward to most today,” says Adam Hirst. “If you want a real atmosphere, don’t miss this one!”

Oh I’ll be watching, counting the red cards with a guilty grin on my big dumb coupon.

Pre-match reading

If you want some pre-match action, Daniel Harris is following Chelsea v Everton. You’ll not believe the score!