Enzo Maresca has received a timely fitness boost ahead of his first Manchester derby in charge of Manchester City, confirming that Nico O’Reilly is 100 percent available for Sunday’s clash against Manchester United at Old Trafford. The England international, who has operated across left-back and midfield this season, returns to contention after a back issue kept him out of City’s last two fixtures. His recovery provides crucial depth as City prepare for one of the most demanding fixtures on their domestic calendar.
O’Reilly’s injury occurred during the pre-match warm-up ahead of City’s 1-0 Premier League victory over Coventry City, where deadline day signing Enzo Fernández was drafted into the starting lineup as a late replacement before Erling Haaland secured the three points. Though the back problem was not deemed serious, O’Reilly was subsequently left out of the squad that traveled to Portugal for Tuesday’s UEFA Champions League opener. In his absence, City produced a disciplined performance to claim a 2-0 win over FC Porto behind a second-half brace from Haaland. With O’Reilly now fully passed fit, City have the opportunity to extend their winning run to five matches in all competitions.
While O’Reilly is cleared to return, Maresca offered a more cautious assessment regarding Jérémy Doku. The Belgium winger has not featured since suffering a calf injury during the Community Shield defeat against Arsenal last month and will miss Sunday’s trip across town. Although Maresca noted that Doku has rejoined training and is slowly building his fitness back up, the winger needs more days to fully recover and is set to miss at least the first five matches of the new campaign.
Sunday’s fixture at Old Trafford marks a major test for Maresca early in his tenure following a significant summer overhaul. City committed nearly £430m in a record-breaking transfer window to reshape the dressing room, heightening expectations across all competitions. However, recent history cautions against taking anything for granted in this rivalry; City have won just two of the last six Manchester derbies and have not recorded a victory at Old Trafford in three years. Facing a United side determined to rebound from a difficult start to their season, City enter rival territory aware that fine margins will likely dictate the outcome.
