Manchester Evening News reporter Samuel Luckhurst has described Patrick Dorgu's hesitance in the build up to the Manchester derby's opening goal as "so costly."
Neither Manchester club have enjoyed a particularly blistering start to the season. In their opening three matches, Manchester City won once and lost twice, whilst Manchester United managed to record a win, a draw and a defeat, sitting one point above Pep Guardiola's side in the early stages of the 2025/26 campaign.
The two clubs met in their first match back from the September international break at the Etihad. The game got off to a quick start and within the opening 20 minutes, City had taken the lead, though the teams had seemed quite evenly matched before the deadlock was broken.
Phil Foden was drafted into the starting line-up, in the face of multiple injuries, and it was the local lad that opened the scoring, nodding in a header from a Jeremy Doku cross, the Belgian having skinned numerous Man United defenders en route to creating the chance.
It was in that build-up where Red Devils defender Patrick Dorgu, in the opinion of Samuel Luckhurst, needed to do better.
'Hesitancy Ended Up Being So Costly'
patrick dorgu
As said by Luckhurst, the Man City goal was "galling" for Ruben Amorim's men, who had been matching up to their rivals well before conceding. In the build-up to Foden's goal, the number 47 played a cross-pitch ball to Bernardo Silva who, in turn, played Doku through.
It was "Dorgu's hesitancy" in pursuing the switch ball that proved definitive for the Red Devils, a mistake that was "so costly," as it saw the Sky Blues take a one-goal lead. The problem is made all the more frustrating given it was a pass that Dorgu, most likely, could have intercepted had he committed.