Manchester City vs. Manchester United: Score, Reaction from 2016 Premier League

Marcus Rashford scored the only goal in Manchester United's 1-0 win over rivals Manchester City during Sunday's derby, delivering a huge boost to the Red Devils' hopes of securing Champions League football. 

The youngster struck after 16 minutes, becoming the youngest player to score a goal in the history of the Manchester derby. City increased the pressure throughout the second half and had their chances to equalise, but they couldn't find a way past David De Gea.

United sit just a single point behind City after the win, as the race for the fourth and final UEFA Champions League spot grows ever more intense.

As shared by United's official Twitter account, Rashford started his first Manchester derby, and with Anthony Martial and Jesse Lingard also starting, the visitors fielded a remarkably young attack:

City started the match by putting pressure on the ball and sending bodies forward, while their rivals employed a more patient approach, working the ball around and using the full width of the pitch.

The first real chance of the match fell to the hosts, as the ball ended up with Jesus Navas after a lucky break, but the Spaniard failed to hit the target with his volley. He then drew a nice save from United goalkeeper De Gea, and Stuart Brennan of the Manchester Evening News noted the hosts were definitely in control early:

But with their first good look on goal, United opened the scoring, and it was emerging star Rashford who took care of business. Juan Mata was given far too much space and did well to advance deep into the City half, before teeing up Rashford, who beat Martin Demichelis before slotting home.

Per BBC Sport, he created his own bit of history:

OptaJohan's Michiel Jongsma noted another interesting statistic:

Martial nearly doubled United's lead minutes later, as Demichelis once again struggled to keep up with United's quick forwards. City goalkeeper Joe Hart was ready for Martial's effort, however, preventing the youngster from adding a quick second.

United continued to find space, and Martial nearly picked out Lingard with an excellent pass. Per Simon Peach of the Press Association, the absence of skipper Vincent Kompany clearly had an impact on the Citizens:

Demichelis had a chance to attone for his errors, but he failed to hit the target with a header after 22 minutes.

Things got even worse for City after Raheem Sterling and Mata clashed and the former picked up an injury as a result. He was replaced by Fernando after just 26 minutes. The introduction of the Brazilian did add some much-needed muscle to City's midfield, and United found it harder to reach their speedy forwards as a result.

Yaya Toure came close to tying things up after 33 minutes, but his shot bounced just past De Gea's goal. Bacary Sagna was the next player to try his luck, but his looping header landed safely in the hands of the Spanish stopper.

The pace of the match dropped as the end of the first half drew near, but there was still time for a clash between Sergio Aguero and Daley Blind, per Rob Dawson of the Manchester Evening News:

Toure pleaded for a penalty just before the half-time whistle, although replays showed he and Michael Carrick had equal hold of the ball. Rashford followed Toure's example, but he too was denied a spot kick as the half came to a close.

Demichelis nearly added to his dreadful afternoon early in the second half, sending a ball back to Hart that was almost cut out by Martial. Hart managed to clear the ball just in time but picked up an injury in the process, per the Peoples Person:

Replacement Willy Caballero was called into action soon after, throwing his body in the way to block a shot from Marcos Rojo. Manager Manuel Pelligrini had seen enough, ending Demichelis' nightmare afternoon and sending on Wilfried Bony.

The Ivorian tested De Gea for the first time with a tame header, while Martial put Caballero to work at the other end.

City started to grow into the second half, passing the ball around the United half with more confidence, and Aguero nearly pulled his side level with a headed effort, hitting a post. BBC Sport's Phil McNulty wasn't impressed with the effort his team-mates were showing:

But the Citizens' pressure was constant at this point, and both Aguero and Bony had chances. Navas also came close, but once again, he failed to hit the target from a promising position.

Chris Smalling was lucky to escape without a second booking after clipping Aguero on the heels, a decision McNulty didn't understand:

United's defence dealt well with the sustained pressure, and the visitors continued to look for chances on the counter-attack. Martial had yet another penalty appeal waved off with minutes left to play, this time after a challenge from Fernandinho.

The Red Devils faithful groaned when the board went up to signal six minutes of added time, and Aguero came close to a late goal, putting a shot wide thanks to good pressure from Antonio Valencia. That would be the Citizens' final chance of the match, as they couldn't find the breakthrough and suffered yet another defeat.

United will host Everton after the international break, while City will travel to Bournemouth.

Post-Match Reaction

Per Simon Stone of BBC Sport, United manager Louis van Gaal took a shot at Demichelis:

Pellegrini disagreed, however, per Daniel Taylor of the Guardian:

The centre-back will have nightmares of Sunday's contest, and once Kompany returns, his chances of starting another match may not look great.

United trail City by just a single point in the standings entering the international break, while West Ham United are also still vying for the fourth and final UEFA Champions League ticket. Sunday's loss presents yet another blow for the Citizens, who have no momentum left and couldn't have asked for a better time to take a break.

United have been inconsistent at best this season, but Sunday's performance showed a lot of maturity, and it's something Van Gaal can build on. Given City's poor form, there's every reason to believe the Red Devils can overtake them in the standings.