Kevin De Bruyne, who scored two goals and assisted one more against Manchester United on Sunday, was pleased with Manchester City’s efforts.
Kevin De Bruyne was pleased with how Manchester City responded to Liverpool’s win against West Ham after a “different” Manchester United derby challenge on Sunday.
Jurgen Klopp’s side closed the gap on Pep Guardiola’s Premier League leaders to three points with a 1-0 victory over West Ham on Saturday.
But any sense of concern was quickly quashed when De Bruyne opened the scoring in the Manchester derby at the Etihad Stadium after just five minutes.
That was his 50th goal in the competition, and he soon added a 51st to his name.
Albeit after Jadon Sancho had levelled up for Ralf Rangnick’s visitors.
Belgium international De Bruyne became the first City player to score a brace in this league fixture.
Since Sergio Aguero in April 2015, then teed up Riyad Mahrez to put the hosts 3-1 up.
With that assist, De Bruyne recorded his 89th goal involvement in just 100 Premier League home games, spread across his time with Chelsea and predominantly City, and the midfielder was satisfied with his side’s 4-1 win.
However, Mahrez had added gloss to the scoreline in the closing stages, firing in off the face of De Gea.
De Bruyne told Sky Sports:
“I think Man United played differently to other occasions. They tried to press us and did well in the first half.
“We had a few more difficulties in getting the ball around, but in the second half, we created more opportunities.”
De Bruyne could not explain why City had previously struggled at home to United but done well away.
“I can’t explain why we always win over there [Old Trafford] but have more difficulty at home,” he said.
“Today, we played well and deserved the three points.
“It’s about winning game by game. Liverpool won yesterday, but we responded correctly.
“Sometimes we don’t get the result, but we will fight until the end of the season.”
Mahrez sealed the derby success with the late strike that took him to 101 goal involvements for City across all competitions. It was his 21st goal of the campaign.
But the Algeria international acknowledged he had to stay patient for his opportunities after a limited first-half display that saw the majority of chances come down City’s left side.
“I think I touched four balls in the first 30 minutes, but in my head, I had to stay focused,” Mahrez told Sky Sports.
“The first half was good, and they [Man Utd] tried to play on the counter.
“In the second half, we were more patient and more controlled and made the difference.”
Discussing his goals, Mahrez added:
“The first one, you have to try and hit the target, and the second one, I wanted to put it high.
“And it hit his face and went in. So I will take both of them.”
Manchester City is looking to forwarding to staying consistent with their form.
When they travel to Crystal Palace, Guardiola’s side will look to protect their lead at the Premier League.
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