MANCHESTER, England -- Manchester City are getting even better and could have won the Manchester Derby by even more if they had gone for it, according to Ederson.
City beat Manchester United 3-1 on Sunday to maintain their two-point lead at the top of the Premier League and move 12 points clear of their rivals. Even after last season's record 100-point title-winning season, Pep Guardiola's side have improved their results with a win against United and a draw away to Liverpool -- four points better than the last campaign -- and Ederson said the manager's ideas are having a greater impact.
"We played a great game and a deserved win," the Brazilian told reporters. "We were way better than United, if we had pushed more we could have got a larger result. I'm happy with this derby.
"Pep's in his third season here, it's my second and I can see the team has a deeper understanding of his ideas. If we keep going like this, we can achieve a lot in the future."
It was also revenge for last season's surprise defeat to United when City's title celebrations were delayed when Jose Mourinho's side fought back to win 3-2.
United were offered another lifeline in Sunday's clash when Ederson pulled down Romelu Lukaku to give away a penalty that Anthony Martial converted. It was the second successive Premier League game that Ederson has given away a spot-kick and he said that goalkeepers don't get a second chance when they make mistakes.
"I tried to retract my hands but had no time to do that. There was contact between us but I don't know if it was enough for a penalty," he said. "It's a quick decision in a moment of the game. I tried to hit the ball, it happens.
"When a goalkeeper makes a mistake, there is no one to save the goal. A striker can miss three or four chances and still score the fifth. It's different for a goalkeeper."
The penalty was United's only shot on target throughout the 90 minutes and teammate Bernardo Silva, who grabbed two assists, added that City stopped any potential of a repeat of last April's surprise turnaround in the derby as Sergio Aguero and Ilkay Gundogan made it 3-1.
"We almost didn't give United any chances bar the penalty," the Portuguese said. "Another three points, that's the most important thing, and a good performance from the whole team. It's important [to be top] and Chelsea dropped points too. It's very good to be top of the table, we're going to try and maintain that and perhaps win more points over Liverpool and the other teams."
Benjamin Mendy admitted that the City players were concerned about a repeat of last season's turnaround but didn't let it get to them.
"In the dressing room at half-time we had spoken about what happened in the derby last year, and we were telling each other not to let that happen again," Mendy told reporters. "We remember it went 2-1, 2-2, 2-3, so we said we had to stay focused, keep trying to play and make chances. So Kun [Aguero] scored and then Gundogan and it was perfect. We stayed focused.
"Every player was saying the same thing: 'OK, guys, don't do the same as last year, be careful, pay attention.' So when we came back on the pitch, we played better than the first half, so won the derby."
Mendy has built a strong relationship with the fans, partly fulled by his entertaining social media presence, and was delighted to give them a derby to celebrate, even if it was just another three points toward defending their title.
"We are very happy to beat United at home, and to take the three points. We know it was a derby, and for the fans, and for us, the team and the city it's very important," he added. "We know the derby is for the fans, and for the people who work for City. We understand that, but last season we lost the derby and won the league, so the three points is important. Now we need to stay focused."