Manchester City captain Kevin de Bruyne tries to close down Manchester United goalkeeper Andre Onana at Old TraffordGetty Images

Manchester City captain Kevin de Bruyne was making his 22nd appearance in the derby

Simon Stone at Old Trafford
Chief football news reporter

Manchester United and Manchester City played out an uninspiring goalless draw that underlined the need for change at both clubs this summer.

City did threaten twice at Old Trafford through Omar Marmoush but the Egypt forward could not beat United goalkeeper Andre Onana on either occasion.

United created a succession of half-chances. But once Alejandro Garnacho had been sent sprawling by Ruben Dias on the edge of the City box in the opening seconds, a familiar story unfolded. As on so many occasions this season, Ruben Amorim's side did not seem as though they believed they could score.

The nearest they came was 13 minutes from time when substitute Joshua Zirkzee turned a Patrick Dorgu cross goalwards but Ederson was able to push the Dutchman's effort to safety.

A draw keeps United anchored in the middle of the lower half of the table but City are now sweating on a Champions League spot, remaining in fifth - which would almost certainly be enough - but with Newcastle two points behind them with two games in hand.

Arguably the most inspiring moment of the whole afternoon came before kick-off when United captain Bruno Fernandes accompanied seven-year-old mascot Bobby Moore from Belfast on to the pitch.

The Portugal international invited Moore to Old Trafford after seeing a video of the youngster celebrating his goal in a previous Manchester derby. In the process Moore became United's first-ever wheelchair/powerchair-using mascot.

Man Utd's scoring woes continue

As at Nottingham Forest on Tuesday, there was a lot to like about United's performance.

Garnacho's early charge downfield set the tone for the first half hour as the home side passed the ball with purpose and repeatedly found players in encouraging positions close to the City area.

But, as was the case at the City Ground, where they lost 1-0, they failed to turn those positions into a meaningful threat.

Garnacho got a header all wrong, Dorgu didn't trust himself to shoot with his right foot and fired wide with his left and Manuel Ugarte couldn't keep his balance long enough to send a far post effort goalwards.

Rasmus Hojlund started but didn't have a chance of note. Zirkzee had one but Ederson was equal to it. United have now failed to score in 11 of their 31 league games this season.

It has been said so many times before. Manchester United need a finisher.

The difference with Tuesday was that at Forest, they gave away a sloppy goal. On this occasion, apart from Onana flapping at one cross, their defence remained secure.

United are now going to record their lowest-ever Premier League points total - although as they needed to win their final eight games to avoid that fate, they probably knew that anyway.

De Bruyne can't roll back the years

With confirmation he will leave City when his contract expires at the end of the season, De Bruyne was playing at Old Trafford in City's famous sky blue for the last time.

It was his 22nd derby appearance overall, spanning a period of blue dominance over red in terms of titles and quality.

Operating in the number 10 role from which Jack Grealish had been dropped, De Bruyne started as though he was determined to make a significant impact.

He had an early shot after turning on to an astute Bernardo Silva pass inside the penalty area but it didn't trouble Onana. De Bruyne then tried a through ball for Phil Foden, which he overhit.

Deeper into the opening period, he surged forward in the matter of old with a real sense of purpose. Even at 33, De Bruyne was able to outpace Diogo Dalot but Foden didn't give the Belgium captain much of an angle and the pass went astray.

At the start of the second half, Matheus Nunes picked out De Bruyne on the right side of the penalty area. But the cross was too far in front of Marmoush. A few minutes later, from a similar position, De Bruyne took advantage of Nunes' overlapping burst and stepped inside. For a second, it appeared De Bruyne would find the corner. Instead, his shot went straight to Onana again.

It was similar to quite a few of De Bruyne recent appearances. The sense of a dying of the light - certainly at this high level - was impossible to escape.

Player of the match

Bruno Fernandes
6.17
8 Bruno Fernandes
6.17
5 H. Maguire
5.27
24 A. Onana
5.19
3 N. Mazraoui
5.18
15 L. Yoro
5.17
20 Diogo Dalot
5.13
11 J. Zirkzee
5.07
17 A. Garnacho
5.03
13 P. Dorgu
5.03
18 Casemiro
5.01
25 M. Ugarte
4.84
7 M. Mount
4.76
2 V. Lindelöf
4.58
9 R. Højlund
4.39
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