Louis van Gaal has ripped up Man United's squad... but will his 'Gaalacticos' do better at the Etihad than David Moyes' flops?

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When Sir Alex Ferguson retired last May he called for evolution rather than revolution as Manchester United moved forward under David Moyes. Louis van Gaal, however, has taken a different approach. 

Having succeeded Moyes, the Dutchman said he would give the players he inherited a chance to impress. Evidently, he didn't fancy what he saw and quickly began putting his own stamp on the squad.

Gone are the likes of Shinji Kagawa, Danny Welbeck, Patrice Evra and Rio Ferdinand as Van Gaal showed 12 players the Old Trafford door, another seven left on loan and Ryan Giggs called time on his glittering career.

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Rio Ferdinand (left) and David Moyes (right) have both left Manchester United since last season's first derby

Marouane Fellaini (right) started last season's derby at the Etihad and is expected to do the same on Sunday

Wayne Rooney is yellow carded in Manchester United's 4-1 defeat at Manchester City last season

Sergio Aguero (second right) scores City's first goal in their 4-1 win last September

In their place has come a cavalry costing £150million - the Dutchman's 'Gaalacticos'. 

The startling change of pace at Old Trafford can be measured by the fact that only five of Moyes' players from last season's derby at the Etihad are likely to start again on Sunday.

David de Gea, Chris Smalling, Michael Carrick, Marouane Fellaini and Wayne Rooney were part of the team that were humbled 4-1 in 2013 as Moyes' reign quickly unravelled. 

They will be hoping that the likes of Daley Blind, Angel di Maria and Marcos Rojo will provide the necessary quality to bridge the gap that has developed between the two rivals in the last year.

United's team may be even more unrecognisable come kick-off on Sunday if Van Gaal opts to start his other two new signings, Ander Herrera and Radamel Falcao, who are both returning to full fitness after injury. Adnan Januzaj and Juan Mata both started against Chelsea last week and could further alter United's team.

Whoever starts at the Etihad, they will line up in a completely different system than under Moyes. 

Last season's derby team (left) and the expected line-up on Sunday (right). Only five players (in yellow) survive

Louis van Gaal let 19 players go over the summer and has transformed his United team

Analysts Bloomberg Sports predict that a Man City win is the most likely outcome against Man United

The 4-4-1-1 and 4-2-3-1 formations (and their variations) favoured by Moyes and Ferguson seem a distant memory as Van Gaal has lurched from an unsuccessful experiment with 3-5-2 to a free-flowing 4-4-2 diamond formation.

Van Gaal has not been afraid to stick to his principles - even if they go against the traditions of United - and this cannot always have been said of Moyes. 

Part of the reason Moyes struggled was the fact he was caught between his style and United's style, which left the players unsure of their roles.

Angel di Maria (left) and Marcos Rojo (right) will be two of the new faces on display for United on Sunday

Luke Shaw (right) will be another player experiencing his first Manchester derby on Sunday

As Ferdinand writes in his autobiography: 'Moyes’s innovations mostly led to negativity and confusion. Sometimes our main tactic was the long, high, diagonal cross. It was embarrassing.

'Other times Moyes wanted lots of passing. He’d say: "Today I want us to have 600 passes in the game. Last week it was only 400". Who cares? I’d rather score five goals from 10 passes.'

What we can be sure of is that United's players will walk onto the Etihad pitch and know precisely what is expected of them. 

The players will be different and the style will be different, but will the end result be different, too? 

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