Manchester City’s shock run of four consecutive defeats in all competitions kicked off with a loss to Tottenham Hotspur in the EFL Cup. About 25 days later, the defending champions will be desperate to get back to winning ways in the two sides’ first Premier League meeting of the season.
By Neel Shelat
Key returnees for Manchester City
There are various factors that explain Manchester City’s rotten run of recent results, but ultimately their long injury list which included a host of key players was the big problem in the short term. As many as five first-team players could make their return this weekend, so the defending champions can reasonably expect to see a much-improved performance.
The defensive department was especially affected by this injury crisis with four key players out of action. John Stones and Rúben Dias have both been out since City’s last match against Spurs, while neither Manuel Akanji nor Nathan Aké were fully fit before the international break. The Dutchman will still be out of action after picking up another hamstring injury, but the rest could all start or be on the bench. In all likelihood, Kyle Walker will not need to continue playing at centre-back and teenager Jahmai Simpson-Pusey will be taken out of the starting lineup.
In midfield, Kevin De Bruyne may well make his first start since September. The Belgian creator has been riddled with injuries of late, but he should be good to go now having made a couple of appearances off the bench earlier in the month before sitting out the international break.
Tottenham looking to continue troubling City
Tottenham Hotspur have famously been Manchester City’s bogey team in the Pep Guardiola era. Apart from Liverpool, Spurs are the only side who have prevented the Catalan tactician from winning more than half of the games played between them during his reign. Since joining City in 2016, Guardiola has come up against them 21 times but only managed to win 10, with Spurs victorious on eight occasions.
City finally managed to break their curse at the Tottenham Hotspur stadium earlier this year, but their recent history against Spurs at the Etihad is also quite interesting. They have won just one of their last three meetings, which was a memorable 4-2 victory in January 2023. Both other matches also had goals galore, as the 3-3 draw last season and the dramatic 2-3 defeat in 2022 contributed to a total of 17 goals across this run.
Ange Postecoglu’s side are certainly not boring as their attack-minded style of play tends to yield goals at both ends. Their last three games have seen 13 goals go in, though they conceded more than they scored both against Ipswich Town and Galatasaray most recently. So, Spurs are also not in the finest of form going into this fixture.
Prediction
Manchester City will be raring to get a win not just to end their losing streak but also to celebrate Guardiola’s two-year contract extension. With key players returning, they should just about have enough to manage a narrow victory.
(Cover image from IMAGO)
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