Wayne Rooney has insisted that one standout Manchester United player showed his determination for Ruben Amorim in the Manchester City clash on Sunday afternoon.
Manchester City welcomed Manchester United to the Etihad on the weekend for the first Premier League clash since the end of the September international break.
United arrived for the first Manchester derby of the 2025-26 Premier League season with their first win under their belt, which came against Burnley at home last month.
City had lost back-to-back Premier League matches ahead of United’s visit to the Etihad, but Pep Guardiola’s men ended their winless drought on Sunday afternoon.
United fell to a 3-0 defeat to City in the Manchester derby and Pep Guardiola’s side sealed their first three points since the opening weekend of the 2025-26 season.
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Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim is seen on the touchline during the Premier League match between Manchester City and Manchester United at the Etihad Stadium in Manchester, England, in 2025.
Photo by OLI SCARFF/AFP via Getty Images
Wayne Rooney drops the ultimate praise on Bryan Mbeumo after the Man Utd star’s performance against Man City at the Etihad
Bryan Mbeumo has been a standout Manchester United performer for manager Ruben Amorim in the Red Devils’ mixed start to the new Premier League season.
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The 26-year-old former Brentford winger played in the right-sided No 10 role in Amorim’s tactical system for United in Sunday’s 3-0 defeat at the Etihad.
Bryan Mbeumo saw out the full 90 minutes for United and the Cameroon international, who arrived at Old Trafford in July, was a lively attacking presence.
Speaking after Manchester City’s 3-0 win on the weekend, Wayne Rooney admitted that he “felt sorry” for Mbeumo after the former Bees ace’s superb showing.
“Do you know what? Mbeumo, I thought, was the best player,” he said on BBC Sport’s The Wayne Rooney Show.
“He kept going. He kept trying. And he was the one I felt sorry for him at the end. He was the one who kept, you know, he had the few shots and missed the target.
“No problem. But in fairness to him, he was the one who I thought, you know, fair play to you because he kept going. I think [like] a few of the other lads […].”
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Bryan Mbeumo deserves his flowers for what he showed vs Man City in Man Utd’s Premier League defeat in the Manchester derby
Bryan Mbeumo was a key target for United in the summer window and the Red Devils’ pursuit of the French-born attacker dragged out across three separate bids.
United’s third – and final – bid for Mbeumo was accepted and the Red Devils landed the former Bees star from Brentford for an initial transfer fee of £65m in July.
Mbeumo has settled in well at the Premier League club and the Cameroon winger has already adapted to the key demands of United manager Ruben Amorim.
The United summer signing came close to netting against City on Sunday, but Mbeumo saw his stunning first-time volley turned away by Gianluigi Donnarumma.