After two wins and a loss so far, the left-back sees the tie at the Etihad Stadium as the perfect opportunity to continue their impressive early season form.
Wood is a proud Mancunian and has grown up understanding the importance and tradition of the fixture against United.
He has no doubts that the likes of Spanish midfielders Brahim Diaz and Paolo Fernandes will follow suit and look to make a serious impression.
“Football in Manchester, especially the Manchester derby, is big worldwide so they know how important it is,” he said.
“Playing in a Manchester derby is the kind of thing footballers everywhere dream of and we’re all excited about the opportunity.
“All of the team know what we’re playing for but we focus on winning every game anyway so it shouldn’t change our plans.”
With the match taking place the evening before the eyes of the world turn on Old Trafford for the first team derby, Wood feels there is an extra buzz throughout the squad.
He said: “It’s less than 24 hours difference between our kick-off and the first team kick-off on Saturday. That makes it extra special because it feels like a bigger event that includes all of us across both teams and clubs.
“Playing in the main stadium makes it even more special so we hope we can make the fans proud ahead of the first team match on Saturday.”
City v United in the Premier League kicks off at 7pm on Friday September 9. Follow this link for information how you can be at the Etihad Stadium to see the future of the club.
