While local bragging rights have always been at stake, the international dimensions to the fixture have increased over time.
As this extract from our matchday programme United Review shows, the 123 different goalscorers in the Manchester derby so far have come from all over the world...
FRANCE
Scorers: Four
Top scorers: Eric Cantona remains the king of the Manchester derby, hitting an astonishing eight goals in seven appearances against City. The Frenchman made his bow against the Blues as a second-half substitute in December 1992 and subsequently embarked on an extraordinary sequence: scoring in a 1-1 draw, bagging home and away braces in 1993/94, opening the scoring in 1994’s 5-0 romp, then rounding off his run with penalties in two early 1996 victories.