That is debatable. Certainly, City were vastly improved on their performance against Everton, which they needed to be. They had to offer some evidence that that showing was a blip and not the norm
Defensively, they were much better. In the first half, they pressed and moved well as a team to prevent United from reaching the most dangerous areas with any regularity. When they did have to defend their box, the positioning of the back-line was usually very good and there seemed a greater determination to keep the ball out of the net, while the midfielders rushed back and marshalled the edge of the box really well, making sure they were first to the cutbacks.
On the ball, they were decent. They were not a huge threat, but they were definitely better than United and while Bobby De Cordova-Reid bundled in his goal, the move that forced the rebound was inventive and efficient.
But, all of the above is really only true of the first hour. From then on, United dominated. If the game had gone to extra-time, it felt like there would have only been one winner. City didn’t have a shot after the 52nd minute and it felt like they barely completed any passes into United’s half after then either.
They had no answer to Alejandro Garnacho, who provided nearly all of the quality in United’s display. Ruben Amorim said post-match that they had targeted James Justin with the Argentinian and City didn’t adjust.
