Manchester City Vs. Manchester United, 2012 Premier League: Halftime Score, Vincent Kompany Has Citizens Ahead

Apologies to those who haven't enjoyed the previous low-scoring Manchester Derbies, but this was one of those for the first 45 minutes. There weren't any goals until stoppage time and the game hass been light on chances, but that didn't keep the game from being entertaining. Both teams have defended very well and it's been a very interesting match tactically, even without any scoring, but a Vincent Kompany goal has added a bit more spice. Manchester United appeared to be defending well enough to take a 0-0 draw into halftime, but Kompany's header in stoppage time has the Citizens up 1-0 at the break.

Man United got off to a great start, pressing in the midfield to win the ball back and start quick counter attacks in the opening 15 minutes of the match. Around that mark in the game, things shifted a bit, with City starting to pass the ball better and give it away less. Paul Scholes and Michael Carrick stopped getting aggressive in the tackle around that mark, preferring to hold their positions. This let City have much more of the ball, but didn't give them much of anywhere to go.

City had a couple of solid chances in the 36th minute, but weren't able to convert. Sergio Aguero had a chance at a volley from 12 yards out, but skied his effort over the crossbar. Under a minute later, Pablo Zabaleta had a great chance from close range, but his shot was partially blocked by a United defender, allowing De Gea to collect the ball easily.

In trademark United style, they started to look for a goal on the counter a little bit more in the final five minutes. They had a couple of half chances, but City's defenders stayed alert and didn't allow the Red Devils to test Joe Hart. It appeared that City would have to go into halftime without a goal, despite their dominance in possession, but they finally struck with a set piece goal in stoppage time.

On a corner by Samir Nasri, Kompany rose up and beat Chris Smalling to the ball, then powered a fantastic header past De Gea and into the back of the net from six yards out. That goal should be a massive game-changer that causes both managers to adjust their tactics, and of course, City will be on top of the Premier League if the result holds.

Alex Ferguson has plenty of attacking options on his bench, and he'll likely use one or two of them shortly, perhaps even at halftime. Strikers Dimitar Berbatov, Javier Hernandez and Danny Welbeck are both available, as are wingers Nani and Ashley Young.