Sport

Snuffing out United’s strikeforce was key to derby victory, says Manchester City skipper Vincent Kompany

By Colin Henrys

Manchester City skipper Vincent Kompany claimed denying Manchester United’s mis-firing strikeforce was central to a second successive derby win at Old Trafford.

Despite the win – the first time City have won back-to-back Old Trafford derbies since 1972 – the Blues remain 12 points behind their Manchester rivals at the top of the Premier League.

Belgian defender Kompany also believes if City can finish the season on a high however, it will stand them in good stead to win back the title next season.

“We worked very hard,” the 26-year-old told Sky Sports

“They have an unbelievable strike force so we had to close the gaps and stay tight to them and we did that very well,  I don’t think we gave many chances away.

“I do believe that the way we finish this season is going to have an impact on next season and it’s always going to start from the beginning again.

“This is a really good game for us to have under our belts and we’ll take that into next season.

“The derby is always a special game and for us to be able to win is massive.”

Team mate James Milner, who opened the scoring at Old Trafford and was awarded man of the match, echoed his captain’s thoughts.

And the 27-year-old Yorkshireman hopes City can take the momentum of their win into Sunday’s FA Cup semi-final against Chelsea at Wembley.

“It gives us great momentum going into the weekend,” he said.

“We wanted to come here and put in a performance and I think we did that – we deserved to win.

“Regardless of where we are in the table, a derby is always important, they’re our rivals.

“It was a great result and the aim is to keep that momentum going until the end of the season.”

Image courtesy of Sky Sports, with thanks.

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