Former Manchester City star Bacary Sagna has admitted he was surprised by the performance of Manchester United in the 6-3 defeat to Manchester City on Sunday.

“Terrible. You know, when you play a big derby, the first minute is very important,” Sagna told the Genting Casino.

“When you play away you need to be ready to go because you know the opponent will come at you straight away. You have to be ready to give 100%.

“When I watched the game, the Manchester United players were not strong enough. They couldn’t keep the ball. They couldn’t complete four passes. If you want to take anything from a game like this, you have to be better on the ball.

“City will always put you under pressure, but these players play for Manchester United, they have quality. They should be able to keep the ball. I was surprised by their performance.

“They didn’t approach this game in the right way. They were not aggressive. This was a rude awakening for United and highlights just how far they are behind Manchester City.

“The TV cameras showed Sir Alex and he looked very unhappy. It must have been very difficult for him to see his club perform like this. Players need to have the right attitude, the right spirit in a game like this and that was the big difference between the two sides.”