The Premier League have a little known rule that angers Manchester United fans and it must change

The mini Manchester derby took place on Monday night but the game was not broadcast anywhere.

Many fans questioned why they couldn't watch Manchester United Under-21s' clash against Manchester City and speculated it must have been a decision taken by MUTV. However, the reason the game wasn't broadcast live is because Premier League rules prohibit clubs from showing PL2 games while a top-flight game is being shown.

Yes, you read that correctly. The Premier League don't allow supporters to watch their club's Under-21 games when any other top-flight side is playing a fixture. And so because Everton played Crystal Palace on Monday, the U21 Manchester derby was not permitted to be shown live because that top flight game was broadcast on Sky Sports.

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The rule is bizarre, absurd and ridiculous. Premier League games are not going to lose notable viewership because an Under-21 game in another part of the country is broadcast. There were United and City fans who wanted to watch the U21 derby at Leigh Sports Village from the comfort of their homes and couldn't because Everton were playing Palace.

A large section of Manchester-based fans did not care about that fixture at Goodison Park and would have probably rather played a game of tiddlywinks than watch it. The Manchester Evening News provide the most extensive coverage of United's academy and supporters who wanted regular updates could only follow the live match blog.

A match report was published on the final whistle, which gave colour to readers, but the game should be shown live and the Premier League's ruling is completely non-sensical. The broadcasting rule is not widely known and deserves to