Manchester city has taken on a good shape so far, going undefeated in seven matches and won five of them. They have even proven to have a strong record against Everton especially at home.
Softfootball had reported that Manchester city defeated Burnley with a 5-1 scoreline at home in Etihad adding to their numerous victories.
For Everton, they aren’t slacking for they come in with confidence too, showing some fine solid results lately. Still, looking at history, their match away from home against Man city hasn’t been strong enough. They have struggled at Etihad through many seasons.
While Manchester city has a 5th place at the League, Everton has the 8th place. In one of the Premier League games against Liverpool, Everton was defeated by Liverpool with a 2-1 result as reported by Softfootball. City’s goal is to go higher at the title race while Everton will hope to give a surprising turn. A clip of City’s players training as shared in their X handle. Watch below:
Team’s News
Pep Guardiola addressed the media ahead of the clash, offering updates on team fitness, individual performances, and his own long-term future. Via the club’s official X handle, Guardiola shared an injury update about some players in the squad. He said:
Pep 💬 (On injury updates) [Rodri] Not yet, he’s not ready for tomorrow.
[Mateo Kovacic] Step by step, but it’s important he’s back.
[Omar Marmoush and Rayan Ait-Nouri] They trained yesterday and are much better. They’re close to being back.
On the Manchester City side, attention should be paid to Erling Haaland who has scored goals in 10 straight appearances. Guardiola said:
He [Erling Haaland] feels really good. Performance level – not just in goals, but in many things… It’s impossible to stay there but, we have this passion to help the team, and sustain in the bad moments. It’s really good of course, for him and Norway… they’re one game away from going to the World Cup, which for him and Norway is really nice and important.
There is still some doubt on Rayan Ait-Nouri due to his ankle injury but still, it is speculated that he might return for the weekend game. Speaking about Nico O’Relly, Pep said:
He’s always played at a high level, but young players have to be careful of the compliments. Being stable mentally is the most important thing in modern football. They need a career for 10-15 years and it’s not possible if your mind is up and down. It’s really important, he went to the national team – being there already is massively important for him.
On the side of Everton, Jordan Pickford who is an impressive goalkeeper will help keep Everton in the fight while under pressure. Pickford has signed a deal to extend his stay at Everton as confirmed in the club’s official X handle;
Looking at Jack Grealish who is on a loan at Everton from Man city, he won’t be able to play for Everton because of the rules that comes with players on a loan— While on loan, players are not allowed to play against their parent clubs.
Manchester City possible starting lineup:
Donnarumma; Nunes, Dias, Gvardiol, O’Reilly; Gonzalez; Bernardo, Foden, Reijnders, Doku; Haaland
Everton possible starting lineup:
Pickford; O’Brien, Keane, Tarkowski, Mykolenko; Gueye, Garner; Dibling, Dewsbury-Hall, Ndiaye; Beto
What can we expect?
With City’s already established dominance at home, their strong record and their current form, they are the obvious favorites. So, many predictions fall towards 2-0 with Man city winning. But, Everton will still try to make the game difficult for them.
On the other hand, Man city can start fast and make things difficult for Everton. For Everton, staying tight and hoping on Pickford to keep them in the game will be key.
