Preview

Apr

2025

Preview: Chelsea and Spurs close the midweek round in the Premier League

Chelsea’s form has been patchy since the end of January, but will Doctor Tottenham provide them with a cure for their recent ills?

By Ian King

Two out of form London rivals

Neither club are in especially stellar form at the moment, with Chelsea having won just four Premier League games in 2025 so far and Spurs having won just three and both clubs having been eliminated early from both the EFL and FA Cups. Chelsea’s only recent wins have come against relegation fodder in the form of Leicester City and Southampton, while Spurs have failed to win any of their last three Premier League matches.

History

Chelsea have long had the upper hand in this fixture, with Spurs having won just two of their last sixteen meetings, going back more than six years. They’ve won more Premier League matches against Spurs – 36 – than any other team, while earlier this season Chelsea won 4-3 at The Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Going back a little further, both sides have some degree of reason to be a little cheerful. Spurs won their last major trophy against Chelsea, the EFL Cup in 2008, and beat them in the 1967 FA Cup final. But the last time the two clubs met in a cup final, Chelsea beat Spurs 2-0 to win the 2015 EFL Cup.

Key players

Southampton aside, Chelsea haven’t scored more than a single goal in a Premier League match since the start of February. Enzo Maresca will, therefore, likely be pleased to see the return of Nicolas Jackson from injury. Jackson is Chelsea’s second highest goalscorer so far in the Premier League this season behind Cole Palmer with nine goals. But will Maresca throw him straight back in?

With the pressure starting to build on Ange Postecoglou, the Spurs manager needs big performances from his available big name players for this match. James Maddison scored the goal that finished off AZ in their recent Europa League last 16 match. Spurs will be needing his creativity in midfield if the Chelsea defence is to be unlocked.

Team News

Cole Palmer, Noni Madueke and Nicolas Jackson all returned to training for Chelsea during the international break, but Omari Kellyman and Marc Guiu both remain sidelined. The injury situation is worse for Spurs, who will be missing Radu Drăgușin and Dejan Kulusevski, while Kevin Danso, Richarlison and Lucas Bergvall all remain doubtful, though could be due to return after their combined international and FA Cup break.

Prediction

Ange Postecoglou needs a result, and while Chelsea away is a bit of a nightmare fixture for Spurs – they haven’t won at Stamford Bridge in seven years – another defeat would only continue to build the narrative that the manager will be on his way come the end of this season. Chelsea may still be patchy themselves, at times, but they have the necessary institutional arrogance to get through a game like this without too many worries. I’ll go for a comfortable 3-1 Chelsea win and the agony to continue to pile up for their London rivals.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

You can follow every game from the Premier League with FotMob this season – featuring deep stats coverage, xG, and player ratings. Download the free app here.

Apr

2025

Preview: Everton aim to dent Liverpool’s title hopes in the Merseyside Derby

Liverpool’s lead at the top of the Premier League table is now down to single digits. Arsenal’s 2-1 win over Fulham on Tuesday night means the Reds find themselves just nine points clear at the summit, albeit with a game in hand over their title rivals.

By Sam McGuire

The Merseyside derby presents Arne Slot’s side with the opportunity to, once again, move 12 points clear with just eight games left to play.

Everton have already dented their neighbour’s title hopes this season. They’ll be hoping to repeat the trick at Anfield on Wednesday evening.

*The last Merseyside Derby at Goodison Park*

Are the Liverpool wheels falling off?

Liverpool are unbeaten in the Premier League since September. They have the best home record in the English top flight with 11 wins from 14 matches and that sole defeat against Nottingham Forest. They’ve varied dominant showings with grinding out results when it matters. They’ve shown they have the resilience of champions.

Their healthy lead at the top should be enough to get them over the line and if they fail to lift the Premier League title in May, it will have been a dramatic decline never seen before.

All things point to the Reds claiming their 20th league title. But there’s something niggling away in the background.

The Reds lost back-to-back matches prior to the international break. Paris Saint-Germain, at Anfield, knocked Liverpool out of the Champions League on penalties. Newcastle United then ended a 70-year wait for a trophy by beating Slot’s men in the Carabao Cup final.

The last time Liverpool put in a performance of champions was back in February when they swept Newcastle aside at Anfield. The longer the poor performances last, the smaller their lead at the gap will become.

This is a big one for the Reds. Bigger than people realise.

Sticky Toffees

If you’re a glass half full type of person, you’ll say that Everton are unbeaten in six.

If you’re a glass half empty kind of person, you’ll point out the Toffees have just one win in their last six in the Premier League.

David Moyes’ side are draw specialists. They’ve drawn three of their last four 1-1. During this six game spell, they’ve also picked up two 2-2 draws – this includes the game against Liverpool at Goodison Park.

Everton have been difficult to beat. With a bit more quality in attack, a number of these draws would likely have been turned into wins. The Blues are without key attackers in Dwight McNeil, Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Iliman Ndiaye.

Here’s the thing though, they don’t need a win at Anfield. Everton are well clear of the dropzone – 17 points to be exact. They aren’t going to claim a European spot either. They have the luxury of just existing for the final nine matches and ruining the hopes and dreams of other teams, starting with Liverpool.

If they avoid defeat, they, once again, dent Liverpool’s title hopes. And that will be seen as a win by the blue half of Merseyside.

Mo Salah farewell tour continues

Latest reports seem to suggest Salah is interested in moving to Saudi Arabia when his contract expires at the end of the season.

If this is to be his last campaign in the English top-flight, he’s going out on a high.

He’s currently tied for the most goal involvements (44) in a 38-game season and there are still nine matches remaining. He’s just three goal involvements shy of the all-time Premier League record of 47 (recorded by Alan Shearer and Andrew Cole back when it was a 42 game season).

The Liverpool No. 11 looks destined to shatter that record. He could also become the first player since Thierry Henry to record 20+ goals and 20+ assists in a single campaign. And he’s doing this at the age of 32 while his time at Anfield is supposedly winding down.

If this is to be his last Merseyside Derby, he’s going to want to go out on a high.

The battle of the injuries

Liverpool are without a host of defenders for this clash.

Trent Alexander-Arnold is still ruled out with an ankle injury. Joe Gomez and Conor Bradley are both missing with hamstring injuries, though the latter is back training but this game has, according to reports, come too soon for the Northern Ireland international.

Slot’s options are limited, so Jarell Quansah will likely operate as a makeshift right-back once again.

Everton, meanwhile, are without attackers. Calvert-Lewin, Ndiaye and McNeil will all miss out, meaning Moyes can’t exactly tinker with his final third options. Will he be able to put out an attack to trouble Liverpool’s weakened backline or will the likes of Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konaté be enough to nullify whatever Everton can put together?

Prediction

If Liverpool want to win the title, this is a game they have to win. They’re going to want to put in a good showing as a reaction to the disappointments prior to the international break, so we’re going with a 2-1 win for the hosts.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

You can follow every game from the Premier League with FotMob this season — featuring deep stats coverage, xG, and player ratings. Download the free app here.

Apr

2025

Preview: AC meets Inter in a Coppa semifinal edition of the Derby della Madonnina

Wednesday’s Derby della Madonnina will pit two historic rivals against each other with AC Milan and Inter in contrasting form.

By Graham Ruthven

Rivals by name only

Sérgio Conceição has only been at AC Milan for three months, but there is already a sense that the 50-year-old is losing his grip of the job. The Rossoneri are struggling badly for consistent form and everyone associated with the San Siro club is under pressure.

Sunday’s defeat to Napoli exposed many of the issues being suffered by Conceição’s team. AC Milan are struggling to get the best out of their attack. Christian Pulisic was anonymous against Napoli. So too was João Félix.

Defensively, AC Milan were all over the place and struggled for any sort of structure or shape in transition. This is something Inter could lay bare such is the speed and directness they have in attack.

Inter have no such problems. Simone Inzaghi’s side are on a five-game winning run in all competitions. They are top of Serie A and are shaping to be Champions League contenders. The Nerazzurri are currently the dominant force in the rivalry.

A place in the Coppa Italia final is on the line and Wednesday’s first leg will set the tone for what could be a memorable tie.

*AC Milan are unbeaten in the three previous derby games played*

Key players

Conceição has a number of decisions to make with his lineup. Santiago Giménez came off the bench against Napoli to make an impact and could start ahead of Tammy Abraham.

Luka Jović is another who could be rotated into the team with Álex Jiménez a possible option at right back over Kyle Walker who has still to find his best form since making the January move to San Siro.

Pulisic could be a difference-maker for AC Milan. However, the USA international has recently been a shadow of the player he was in the first half of the season.

With Lautaro Martínez out through injury, it will be on Marcus Thuram to lead the line for Inter in Wednesday’s Coppa Italia semi-final. The Frenchman has scored 16 goals in all competitions this season.

Inter’s midfield of Nicolo Barella, Hakan Çalhanoğlu and Henrikh Mkhitaryan will look to control the derby in the centre of the pitch. Meanwhile, Denzel Dumfries is a funnel into the attack down the right side.

Team news

Ruben Loftus-Cheek underwent appendix surgery over the weekend and will miss Wednesday’s derby encounter while Emerson Royal is still sidelined with an injury.

Yunus Musah missed Sunday’s league match against Napoli through suspension and is available again to face Inter in the Coppa Italia. The American could come into the midfield unit to provide some energy.

Martínez suffered a hamstring string on international duty with Argentina. In his absence, Inzaghi faces a choice between Joaquin Correa, and Marko Arnautović alongside Thuram with Mehdi Taremi struggling with illness.

Prediction

For all their struggles this season, AC Milan have been able to step it up in the derby games against their city rivals, so we expect a cagey encounter in this first leg. Late goals have also been a feature in both league matches this season, plus their meeting in the Super Cup. With that said, Simone Inzaghi’s side have been in brilliant form recently, so we’ll settle on a narrow ‘away’ win: AC Milan 1-2 Inter.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

You can follow every game from the Coppa Italia with FotMob this season — featuring deep stats coverage, xG, and player ratings. Download the free app here.

Apr

2025

Preview: Manchester City face Van Nistelrooy’s out-of-form Foxes

Manchester City can boost their chances of Champions League qualification by beating Leicester City on Wednesday evening.

By Graham Ruthven

Salvaging the season

This season hasn’t been what Manchester City wanted it to be, but Pep Guardiola’s team are at least trying to salvage something after making the semi-finals of the FA Cup on Sunday.

City’s comeback win away to Bournemouth showed there is still life left in the Etihad Stadium outfit and victory over Leicester City on Wednesday night would boost their chances of qualifying for next season’s Champions League.

Ruud van Nistelrooy’s Leicester could hardly be in any worse form than they are right now. The Foxes have lost their last six league games in-a-row and have failed to score a single goal over the course of that run.

If Leicester can play on the counter-attack and use their speed in the final third, they could cause Manchester City issues. Guardiola’s high line will give the visitors something to target. Otherwise, City will likely stroll to three points.

Key players

Omar Marmoush will almost certainly lead the line for Manchester City after the injury suffered by Erling Haaland in the FA Cup victory over Bournemouth. The Egyptian is most effective as a second striker, but Guardiola doesn’t have many other options in the number nine position.

Nico O’Reilly made a strong case to start against Leicester after changing the game against the Cherries off the bench. The teenager could start at left back with Matheus Nunes potentially at risk of losing his spot.

With Leicester expected to sit deep and play on the break, it will be on City to find ways to break them down. This will place a creative onus on Kevin de Bruyne and Phil Foden. Jérémy Doku and Savinho could provide dynamism and directness on the wings.

*Leicester City have the second worst goalscoring record in the division*

Jamie Vardy is past his peak, but the 38-year-old will still be Leicester’s most potent threat, particularly if Leicester are able to play through the Manchester City press at speed.

Mads Hermansen will face a busy evening at the Etihad Stadium, as will the defensive line of Conor Coady, Wout Faes and Luke Thomas in front of him. Leicester will bend, but can they stop themselves from breaking?

Team news

While Manchester City have yet to reveal the true extent of Haaland’s knee injury, he will miss the home fixture against Leicester. The fear for City is that this will be the start of a prolonged absence for the Norwegian striker.

Rodri is still sidelined, although there has been some speculation that the Spanish midfielder could return from injury before the end of the season. Nonetheless, Wednesday’s match will come too soon for him.

Abdul Fatawu is a long-term absentee for Leicester, with Ricardo Pereira another player who has recently missed matches through injury. The full back will be assessed before the trip to the Etihad Stadium.

Odsonne Édouard hasn’t featured much for the Foxes lately while Harry Souttar is still sidelined through with an injury.

Prediction

While Leicester might not snap their current string of defeats, we do think the Foxes have got a good chance of at least ending their barren run in front of goal. But with Man City’s creative players beginning to find their stride again, City will find a way to break down the visitors to the Etihad: Man City 3-1 Leicester.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

You can follow every game from the Premier League with FotMob this season — featuring deep stats coverage, xG, and player ratings. Download the free app here.

Apr

2025

Preview: Atletico and Barcelona set for round two of their Copa semifinal

The Copa del Rey first leg between Barcelona and Atletico was one of the games of the season, ending 4-4 at the Estadi de Montjuïc thanks to a late equaliser from Alexander Sørloth. Its winner take all and a place in the final up for grabs in the second leg on Wednesday.

By Alex Roberts

Hansi Flick’s side will be hoping their legs aren’t too tired just yet as their hectic few weeks continue, while Atlético, with just one win in their last five games across all competitions, need to put their recent hiccup behind them.

*Shot map and xG for that epic first leg*

Barca left to sweat over Raphinha

Speaking of tired legs, Raphinha asked not to feature in Barca’s 4-1 La Liga win over Girona just a few days ago, saying he wasn’t feeling 100% fit having flown in from Brazil around 72 hours earlier.

You can’t blame him really, that’s a hell of a trip, especially when you just got battered 4-1 by Argentina. It didn’t matter, whoever Flick plays up front they can’t seem to stop scoring, going three points clear of Real Madrid thanks to the win over Girona.

Flick refused to say whether the red-hot winger would feature against Atlético, though he will doubtless want him to. With 27 goals and 18 assists in his 42 games across all competitions, he’s gone from unwanted to a genuine Ballon d’Or candidate.

Antoine Griezmann is a certified LaLiga legend

The Frenchman broke one of Lionel Messi’s many LaLiga records in Saturday’s 1-1 draw with Espanyol, becoming the Spanish top flight’s most capped foreign player with an almost ridiculous 521 appearances.

Of course, not all of those came for Atlético, he featured for Real Sociedad and Barcelona too, but his best days have come in those famous red and white stripes, in fact, he scored in the first-leg.

He’s out of contract at the end of the season, and it remains to be seen whether his story in Spain will continue, especially with several MLS side reportedly circling. The Copa del Rey may be his last chance to win another trophy with Atlético, he just needs to get past Barcelona first.

Robert Lewandowski simply doesn’t age

There aren’t many 36-year-olds who could do what Lewandowski is doing at the moment. A brace in the 4-1 win over Girona marked his 35^th and 36^th goals in 42 appearances and sent him three clear of Kylian Mbappé, who is a whole decade his junior, in the race for the golden boot.

At a time when Barcelona have had transfer flop after transfer flop, bringing the legendary Polish forward in from Bayern Munich may just be their best piece of business of the past five years.

He’s got another year on his contract at Camp Nou, and he doesn’t seem to be letting up any time soon. Top quality forwards are hard to come by nowadays; Barca are lucky to have a man like Lewandowski on their books.

*Lewandowski’s shot map in LaLiga, 2024/25*

Julián Alvarez loves the Copa del Rey

The Argentinian has been kinda hit and miss in the league for Atlético this season, but in cup competitions he’s flourished, two-touch penalty (depending on who you ask) in the defeat to rivals Real Madrid aside.

Alvarez is the top scorer in this season’s Copa del Rey, bagging five goals in his six appearances. He also has the most goal contributions as a whole, providing two assists on top of his goals.

He’s not quite the main man at the Metropolitano, but he’s not far off. Dragging Atlético to their first piece of silverware since 2020-21 will go a long way to silencing some of the doubters.

Prediction

Don’t expect to see another 4-4 in this one. Atlético have been poor, but Barca’s priorities lie elsewhere. We’re going to go with a 2-1 win for Diego Simeone’s side.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

You can follow every game from LaLiga with FotMob this season – featuring deep stats coverage, xG, and player ratings. Download the free app here.

Apr

2025

Preview: Real Madrid vs. Real Sociedad, Copa Del Rey semifinal, second leg

Heading into April, it’s do-or-die time for clubs as they look to sign off the season with silverware. For Real Sociedad, Tuesday night is a huge opportunity. For Real Madrid, it’s step two of a possible quadruple this season.

By Karl Matchett

Carlo Ancelotti’s balancing act

With the Uefa Super Cup already in the bag, Real Madrid lost out on a chance to make it two trophies from two with the Spanish Supercopa over the winter. However, they are in the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey, the quarter-finals of the Champions League and in the top two of LaLiga, it can still be a massive and historic season for Los Blancos if they keep momentum and stay fortunate with fitness.

With so many games still to play it hasn’t been a surprise to see Carlo Ancelotti shuffle his pack a little – Vinícius Júnior, Federico Valverde and Rodrygo were all used off the bench at the weekend. Following this match though it’s Valencia and Arsenal coming up so chances to rest or rotate further might become more sparse – but in the cup there’s no margin for error.

*A reminder of how we stand after the first leg of this semifinal*

All or nothing for La Real

While Madrid are chasing everything, Real Sociedad have let their season drift and this is last-chance saloon for it to be a worthwhile one – or to play in Europe next term. A six-match winless streak was at least ended at the weekend but La Real are out of the Europa League and lost the first leg of this tie 1-0 at home a month ago. Sat in tenth in the league, they must go all-in to cause a huge shock here or else their campaign effectively ends in early April.

Recent form

Five wins in a row for Madrid, and one “home team” defeat since 5 November – but even that was actually a neutral venue used to host the Supercup final against Barcelona. The only teams La Real have beaten away from home in 2025 are Ponferradina in the cup and Midtjylland in Europe. This will be tough.

Team news

Three long-term injuries and two doubts for Real Madrid. Dani Ceballos probably won’t play anyway, but Thibaut Courtois could in theory be pushed if he’s deemed close enough, given it’s a semi-final. However since Andrii Lunin has played in the Copa so far it would be a surprise to see any risks taken in goal.

For La Real, Brais Méndez, Nayef Aguerd, Sheraldo Becker and Arsen Zakharyan are all out, with Jon Pacheco the other doubt in the squad.

Key player

Real Madrid don’t have to go all guns blazing here and can bide their time, which means Antonio Rüdiger keeping the ship steady will be priority number one at the back while the attackers await their moment to pounce. The German doesn’t necessarily win a whole lot of his duels (2.8 per 90 on the ground and only 57% of his aerials) so he may need an improvement on the night there, but it’s really his recovery running and organisation of others where Los Blancos benefit most.

Prediction

Home advantage and a first-leg lead skews the tie hugely in Real Madrid’s favour and Los Blancos are unlikely to let this moment slip. Real Madrid 2-1 Real Sociedad (3-1 agg).

(Cover image from IMAGO)

You can follow every game from the Copa del Rey with FotMob this season — featuring deep stats coverage, xG, and player ratings. Download the free app here.

Apr

2025

Preview: Forest looking to complete a double over Amorim’s Man United

High-flying Nottingham Forest away may be the biggest test yet of whether there’s any substance to Manchester United’s recent upswing.

By Ian King

Pre-and-post International Break form

Both Nottingham Forest and Manchester United go into their meeting at The City Ground in decent form. United are four games unbeaten in the Premier League and through to the quarter-finals of the Europa League, while Forest have taken seven points from their nine and got through to the semi-finals of the FA Cup for the first time since 1991 at Brighton last weekend.

H2H History

In January 1990, Alex Ferguson famously went to The City Ground in the FA Cup needing a win to stay in his job. He got it, and the rest of that story writes itself. Things aren’t quite that bad for Ruben Amorim. Not yet.

More recently, Forest have won two of their last three against Manchester United and beat them 3-2 at Old Trafford last September. But United did win on their last trip to The City Ground, in the FA Cup Fifth Round last February, and it is also worth remembering that prior to these last three games United had won the last eleven in a row, a record stretching back to 1995/96.

Key players

What an evening it would be for Anthony Elanga to show United what they gave away. They sold him to Forest for £15m in the summer of 2023. Since then, Elanga has made 65 Premier League appearances for Forest, scoring ten goals, and managed a hat-trick of assists in Forest’s recent 7-0 demolition of Brighton.

Whichever way you cut it, Manchester United continue to be heavily dependent on their captain, Bruno Fernandes. His hat-trick against Real Sociedad in the Europa League made it five goals in his last three games in all competitions, while he has three goals and three assists in his last five Premier League matches.

Team News

Manchester United’s early FA Cup elimination gave them a break, and Amorim can welcome back Luke Shaw, Leny Yoro, Harry Maguire, Altay Bayındır and Tom Heaton. Patrick Chinazaekpere Dorgu has now served his suspension, but Lisandro Martínez, Amad Diallo, Kobbie Mainoo, Ayden Heaven and Jonny Evans will all be absent.

Nuno Espírito Santo has a couple of significant doubts. Chris Wood ran into problems with his hip while on international duty with New Zealand, and is a major doubt for this fixture. And there was a fresh worry on Saturday, when Morgan Gibbs-White collided with a goalpost at Brighton. He’ll be in need of assessment before starting.

Prediction

This match does feel like something of a summit. Forest are where United may feel they should be, and with both teams in decent form this does have the vibe of a pretender to the throne staking their claim. But we should believe the evidence of our own eyes. Forest are A Good Football Team, and winning this fixture would be confirmation of what we already know. I’ll go 3-2, though in the full knowledge that anything could happen tonight.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

You can follow every game from the Premier League with FotMob this season – featuring deep stats coverage, xG, and player ratings. Download the free app here.

Apr

2025

Preview: Arsenal get back to action against Marco Silva’s Fulham

Arsenal host Fulham in the Premier League on Tuesday as Mikel Arteta’s side desperately attempt to cling onto their title hopes.

By Matt Smith

Marco Silva’s men will be looking to overcome the disappointment of being eliminated from the FA Cup at the weekend as they continue to fight for the European places in the league.

The Cottagers have picked up some impressive results over Arsenal in the last few seasons, and are unbeaten in their last three meetings. The last time the two sides met, they couldn’t be separated as goals from Raúl Jiménez and William Saliba saw the game end 1-1 earlier in the season.

Team News

Arsenal have received a major boost heading into the game with Mikel Arteta confirming that Bukayo Saka will be available for selection once again. The England international is yet to feature in 2025 after undergoing surgery. In more disappointing news, Riccardo Calafiori will be unavailable after picking up an injury on international duty.

Fulham aren’t expected to have any fresh fitness woes, with Silva confirming that there is ‘nothing serious’ except a few knocks and some tiredness from the Crystal Palace clash.

Defence over attack

Arsenal have been one of the most impressive sides in the Premier League this season when it comes to their defensive performances, conceding just 0.8 goals per game, fewer than any side in the league. Going forward is where the issues lay, and losing Saka for a large portion of the campaign undoubtedly hampered their impact in the final third.

The Gunners have created 45.7 expected goals this season, ranking them seventh in the division. If they are hoping to win the Premier League, they’re going to have to show more of a threat in the final third.

Fulham a tight-knit unit under Silva

Similar to Arsenal, the Cottagers are a difficult side to penetrate and have conceded just 33.4 expected goals this season, only bettered by the Gunners and Liverpool. The addition of Joachim Andersen at the back has helped their cause, meaning they’ve conceded just 1.3 goals per game on average.

The defeat at home to Crystal Palace in such a crucial FA Cup tie might have knocked some of the wind out of the sails of Fulham, but they’ll need to bounce back quickly if they want to stand a chance of winning the incredibly tight race for Europe.

The return of Saka could be key

Despite Saka missing the whole of 2025 so far, the England international still leads the way for goals and assists combined for Arsenal. Saka has also created the most big chances (19), has the highest expected assists tally (5.6) and averages a higher match rating than any other player in the squad (7.76).

Arteta simply doesn’t have another player who can replicate what Saka produces. There’s an argument to suggest he could be rested with a Champions League clash against Real Madrid coming up, but even a 30-minute cameo against Fulham could make all the difference for Arsenal.

Prediction

Winning the Premier League title is still mathematically possible, so we’re not expecting the Gunners to slip up. We’re going for a 2-0 Arsenal win.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

You can follow every game from the Premier League with FotMob this season — featuring deep stats coverage, xG, and player ratings. Download the free app here.

Mar

2025

Preview: Bournemouth and Man City round off the FA Cup quarterfinals

Bournemouth host Manchester City in the quarter-final of the FA Cup at the Vitality Stadium as the Cherries go in search of their first major trophy.

By Matt Smith

Andoni Iraola’s side have in fact never reached the semi-final of the FA Cup, but they come up against serial trophy winners Manchester City, who are looking to find a silver lining in what has been a disappointing season.

Bournemouth actually got the better of Pep Guardiola’s men the last time the two sides met, securing a 2-1 victory in their first meeting of the 2024/2025 Premier League campaign. Antoine Semenyo and Evanilson struck for the home side that day, with Joško Gvardiol netting a late consolation.

Team news

Iraola will be without two of his star performers for this one, with Milos Kerkez and Dean Huijsen both suspended after picking up two yellow cards in the competition. It’s a crucial blow for the Cherries, but Iraola has confirmed that Marcos Senesi is edging closer to full fitness and could replace Huijsen.

City should have no fresh injury concerns heading into this game. Rodri, John Stones, Nathan Aké, and Manuel Akanji remain on the treatment table, but Oscar Bobb has recently returned to action for the U21s.

Bournemouth dropping off after impressive start

Bournemouth enjoyed a sensational start to the Premier League season, which saw them in contention for a European place. However, in recent weeks, the Cherries have dropped off drastically, failing to win (in 90 minutes) in their previous five matches.

Iraola’s side have been one of the most impressive sides going forward in the competition so far. Only Manchester City (12.9) have created more expected goals in the FA Cup this campaign than Bournemouth (8.9) Justin Kluivert has created eight chances for his team-mates in the competition, but he’s only provided one assist.

City scoring at will in the FA Cup

Although Guardiola’s side have struggled in the Premier League and Europe, they’ve been finding the back of the net with ease in the competition. The Citizens have scored 4.3 goals per match this campaign, more than any other side.

City have also created a whopping 26 big chances, double the number of Wolves who have created the second-most in the competition. The attacking quality of City needs no introduction, and on their day, the majority of sides in Europe will struggle to contend them.

Doku the danger man

Jérémy Doku hasn’t featured too heavily in the FA Cup so far, but with City only competing for one trophy, we could see Guardiola go full strength and start the winger. In the Premier League this season, Doku has produced 6.82 successful dribbles per game, comfortably more than any other player.

*Doku’s possession stats, Premier League 2024/25*

Due to injuries, Bournemouth are likely to line up with Lewis Cook at right-back. Although he’s performed impressively in that position, he’s naturally a midfielder, so that could be an interesting match-up at the Vitality Stadium.

Prediction

Although City have struggled this season, the thought of Guardiola’s side going without a trophy feels unfathomable. We’re going for a 1-1 draw, with City advancing in extra-time.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

You can follow every game from the Premier League with FotMob this season — featuring deep stats coverage, xG, and player ratings. Download the free app here.

Mar

2025

Preview: Top of the table Barcelona face Girona

Barcelona players barely had any time to recover from a grueling international break, earning an impressive 3-0 win over Osasuna on Thursday night – just 72 hours after jumping off the plane. It’s something they’ll have to get used to; Hansi Flick’s side face Girona as their manic schedule continues.

By Alex Roberts

Without a win in their last five games and sitting down in 13^th, it’s fair to say Girona have failed to build on last season’s Champions League qualification. Losing Artem Dovbyk and Savinho has essentially made their attack impotent.

Top of LaLiga, Barcelona have no such issues, actually, they can’t stop scoring. In the league alone they’ve bagged 78 goals. It’s getting a bit out of hand to be quite honest.

*Barca average 2.8 goals per game in LaLiga*

Real Madrid thought THEY had scheduling issues

Earlier in the season, Carlo Ancelotti bullishly said his side would refuse to play if they didn’t have at least 72 hours rest. Barcelona would be so lucky. The Catalonians have a massive EIGHT games (including this one) over the next three weeks.

Flick wasn’t quite so entitled about the situation, but he was clearly furious about their hectic next few weeks in his presser ahead of the win over Osasuna, saying: “I don’t want to speak about my reaction, I think it is not good.”

He of course went on to speak about it, in some depth, but he has every right to be annoyed. The Osasuna game was ‘indefinitely’ postponed because of the unfortunate and untimely death of beloved club doctor Carles Miñarro Garcia. The powers that be should have been more sympathetic.

A stand out in a struggling side

Girona have been poor this season, but Yangel Herrera has not. The Venezuelan is the heart beat of Michel’s squad, sitting in the pocket between the defence and his fellow central midfielders.

Herrera’s four goals and three assists can only be bettered by veteran striker Cristhian Stuani, who has eight goal contributions for Girona this season. That’s not bad for defensive midfielder whose main job is to start attacks rather than finish them.

Barcelona’s midfield is arguably the best in the world at the moment, at the very least it’s the most balanced, even with Dani Olmo set to miss the next couple of weeks. Herrera will have his work cut out, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t up to the challenge.

Maybe Barca shouldn’t sell Frenkie de Jong after all

The Dutchman has been linked with a move away from Camp Nou since he walked through the door. It’s not entirely his fault, the club’s ongoing financial issues have forced them to try to sell one of their prized assets.

De Jong has refused to leave, however, and over the past few weeks, he’s shown exactly why Flick and Co should do absolutely everything they can to keep him around. Much like Herrera for Girona, he is the base from which everything builds.

With a 94.1% pass accuracy and a 66.7% long ball accuracy, he’s one of the best ball players in the world, never mind LaLiga. Barcelona have had plenty of transfer flops over the past decade or so, De Jong isn’t one of them.

*LaLiga as it stands before Sunday’s games*

Prediction

Barcelona score loads of goals and Girona don’t, it’s as simple as that really. We’re going to go with a comprehensive 4-0 win for the league leaders, to restore Barca’s three point advantage over Madrid.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

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