Manchester Derby: Mourinho, Guardiola face League Cup reunion

Jose Mourinho and Pep Guardiola face off for the second time this season when Manchester United entertain holders Manchester City in the English League Cup fourth round on Wednesday.

Guardiola's City took the spoils when he and Mourinho resumed hostilities in September, winning 2-1 at Old Trafford through goals from Kevin De Bruyne and Kelechi Iheanacho.

But City have gone off the boil since, Sunday's 1-1 draw with Southampton leaving them without a win in five games, while United crashed to a crushing 4-0 defeat at Mourinho's former club Chelsea.

Asked whether the identity of his side's League Cup opponents would help motivate his hurting players, Mourinho told MUTV: "I would prefer to play in the Premier League.

"It's a bad feeling in the Premier League. With the combination of results, the gap to the top is six points. We've had a very difficult period of matches.

"We are really, really sad, but again this is not for kids. This is for men and tomorrow (Monday) we have to be men and work for the next one."

City's win at United on September 10 formed part of a sequence of six consecutive victories, which suggested Guardiola might find life in England something of a stroll.

But since drawing 3-3 in a frenetic Champions League game at Celtic, the early-season certainty has vanished.

One-sided losses to Tottenham Hotspur and Barcelona sandwiched a 1-1 draw with Everton before Sunday's stalemate with Southampton, who went ahead after a blunder by City centre-back John Stones.

Manchester City's midfielder Fernandinho (L) vies with Southampton's striker Charlie Austin during the 1-1 draw in Manchester on October 23, 2016 (AFP/File)