Preview: Manchester United vs. Manchester City – prediction, team news, lineups

The two most in-form teams in the Premier League turn their attention to the EFL Cup on Wednesday night as Manchester United host Manchester City in a mouth-watering derby at Old Trafford.

The local rivals are meeting in the semi-finals of the competition for the second year in a row, and both of them come into the contest off the back of notable weekend wins.

Victories over Aston Villa and Chelsea respectively at the weekend ramped up the talk of a potential title challenge for both clubs, despite both making underwhelming starts to the season.

They have since made up for lost time, though; Man United have taken 26 points from the last 30 on offer in the top flight, with Friday night’s triumph over Aston Villa sending them level on points with champions Liverpool at the summit, while Man City have won five and lost none of their last seven league games.

It was the nature of Man City’s triumph over Chelsea on Sunday which raised talk of a potential title challenge as Pep Guardiola’s side put the Blues to the sword during a clinical display at Stamford Bridge.

The fact that it has taken until the New Year for such talk to really arise shows how far below par Man City have been for much of the campaign, although in terms of defeats they have only suffered two in their 24 outings across all competitions this season – three times fewer than Wednesday’s opponents.