Malacia battled City

The significance of fullbacks in the modern game was not lost on Pep Guardiola when he made the move to the English football scene. Erik ten Hag won't need to be reminded of how significant their actions over the weekend were in any way.

New United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer saw the necessity for a new left back during the summer transfer window that just passed, even though few fans had recognized the position's importance. During his time at Feyenoord, he kept a close eye on Tyrell Malacia's development and was able to witness it firsthand. When Lyon expressed interest in making a transfer, he gave his current team the instruction to negotiate on his behalf.

The first few weeks showed a lot of potential. Malacia was one of those who came in and shone with a win over a weakened Liverpool team after United tore up the team sheet after their disastrous double defeat to start the season. Malacia's performance helped United win.

The 23-year-old showed a lot of promise in the weeks that followed, but at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday afternoon, he, along with United, got a rude awakening to the harsh reality of the situation.

After just two minutes of play, fellow fullback Diogo Dalot was shown a yellow card, which immediately established United's demeanor. Michael Oliver didn't waste any time reaching into his pocket to give the Portuguese player a warning before they took a swing at the vivacious Jack Grealish. Malacia would join him in the book twenty minutes later before being hooked at half-time as a result of having been run ragged by Phil Foden, who pounced on the space he was allowed to use.

United's pre-match optimism had been buoyed by the news that Ruben Dias would start on the bench. However, despite the fact that City were fielding back-up center-backs in the form of Nathan Ake and the inspired Manuel Akanji, they significantly had their first-choice full-backs to call upon. This was a crucial advantage for City.

Kyle Walker and Joao Cancelo will feature low down on the list of standout performers for City, but their excellence came in their large anonymity on the day, as they quietly went about their duties with covering runs and composed passing out from the back. Their performances will feature low down on the list of standout City performers.

In contrast, United's full-backs appeared erratic and were drawing attention for all the wrong reasons. Those were the things that caught the eye. They were not only late in making tackles, but they were also slow in making decisions, hesitating when they were in possession of the ball and stuttering while dropping back to defend.

The arrival of Luke Shaw at halftime brought some much-needed calm to the situation, but it also brought the realization that the damage had already been done. City had a busy schedule ahead of them, so there was little need for them to inflict even more damage on their recently noisy neighbors. Instead, they decided to humiliate them further through sheer submission, as there was little need for them to inflict even more damage on their neighbors.

Shaw, a British international player, has a good chance of being the lone United player to benefit from the team's loss in the derby. Even though he was in a poor position for the sixth goal, the calls for him to return to the club line-up will only grow after Malacia's poor performance. Not only was he impressive while playing for his country, scoring a goal against Germany a week ago, but the calls for him to return will only grow after Malacia's poor performance.

However, it does not appear likely that there will be any immediate changes made to the right-back position. United are already publicly in the market for one for the following season, but their options are somewhat limited at the moment due to the fact that Ten Hag is not a fan of Aaron Wan-Bissaka.

The former Crystal Palace defender was available for transfer during the summer of 2018, and he could have left the club in response to a satisfactory offer. One did not. If Ethan Laird does well during his loan stint at Queens Park Rangers, there is a chance that he will be considered for a long-term position. However, it is difficult to make the transition from the second-tier league to the top level, and the youngster Marc Jurado is still in an extremely inexperienced stage.

However, the reality is that a fullback's success is still determined by how reliable they are in their own box, despite the fact that the narrative has shifted in recent years to focus on what a player can offer going forward instead of how reliable they are in their own box.

The fullbacks for United are not yet fully developed.