Ex-Manchester United captain Gary Neville admits games against the likes of Manchester City make him miss his own playing career.

Neville will be in situ at the Etihad Stadium this afternoon as United and City do battle, once again, in the Premier League. While City have benefitted from the brighter recent history, their form has been wayward to say the least this season - making the result of this one tough to predict.

The Blues have won just one of their last 10 matches across all competitions and need three points today to keep chase with Liverpool at the top of the Premier League. As for United, meanwhile, their recent form under Ruben Amorim has been much better with last weekend's defeat to Nottingham Forest a blip put right on Thursday night away to Viktoria Plzen in the Europa League.

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Whichever side of the divide you find yourself, there's no doubting that the atmosphere will be electric and, for Neville, it appears days like today make him long for a return to the pitch. Taking to LinkedIn, he wrote: "15 years goes quickly doesn't it?

"My kick wasn't scoring goals, unfortunately, but I used to absolutely love giving opposition fans some when we scored a late winner. I've never thought once since I retired that I wish I could play again.

"I knew it was short-lived and I was very lucky."

Neville, who has forged a hugely-successful second footballing career as a pundit and TV figure, continued: "But it would be nice just to be able to get that feeling of utter bedlam in your head and body when we won this type of game late on. I do miss that part."

You can follow all the action, reaction and analysis throughout the day on The Manchester Evening News website whether you are a Red or a Blue.