Ruben Amorim insists Manchester City are in a “better place” than Manchester United ahead of the derby despite their recent dip in form.
Pep Guardiola's side have won just one of their last 10 games in all competitions ahead of the Manchester derby, suffering their seventh defeat against Juventus in the Champions League on Wednesday.
United, meanwhile, have lost their last two Premier League games against Arsenal and Nottingham Forest but came from behind to beat Viktoria Plzen 2-1 in the Europa League on Thursday.
The Red Devils sit in thirteenth place after fifteen matches and are eight points behind Sunday's opponents at the start of the weekend, but Amorim believes the Citizens are still the favorites to claim all three points at the Etihad.
“The great teams can react at any time, and I think they are in a better place than us in terms of understanding the game, the way they play and the confidence they have,” Amorim said.
“Even in moments like this, we have a lot to focus on in our team. We will face a great opponent and I am more focused on our problems. We have a lot of problems here.”
“I can't treat it like a normal derby. It should be like two great teams fighting for the title, and it isn't at the moment.
“So it's only one more match with a very good opponent. Both teams are struggling at the moment, so I hope I can feel that real feeling of a derby in the future.” [that has title implications].”
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Amorim has already beaten City this season, with his Sporting CP side winning 4-1 in a Champions League match before moving to Old Trafford.
Only one manager has beaten the reigning Premier League champions with two different sides in one season. Alan Pardew defeated City with both Newcastle United and Crystal Palace in 2014/15.
Hugo Viana is set to make the move from Sporting to City to replace Txiki Begiristain as director of football, while Amorim was linked to the club ahead of Guardiola's contract extension.
However, the 39-year-old insists he was never approached for the position.
“Never,” he said. “I never heard from them, and this was my only option.
“When Manchester United spoke to me, I didn't hesitate. I already had something in mind [the United job] could be a possibility. With Manchester City or Viana? There's nothing left.”
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