You know what Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola wants for his birthday tomorrow? A victory over Crystal Palace, which would put his side a minimum of 15 points clear of fifth place. Not that anyone doubts the chances of City finishing in the top four, but with the league title possibility have waived goodbye a long time ago, you got to focus on locking down all the other priorities of the campaign.
City brings a now pretty fit squad to the table for this one. Aymeric Laporte is progressing, and while this match is too soon for him to feature, it won’t be long until he’s back in action.
Another long term injury absentee, Leroy Sane, remains a few weeks away. Flipping over to the visitors, they have a few injuries to contend with. That list includes: Schlupp, Townsend (both groin), Dann (calf), Meyer (ankle), Sakho (hamstring) and Van Aanholt
Manchester City Starting XI Prediction vs. Crystal Palace
Sterling Aguero Mahrez
De Bruyne Rodri Bernardo
Zinchenko Fernandinho Stones Walker
Ederson
Manchester City vs Crystal Palace FYIs
January 18, 3pm, City of Manchester Stadium
Key stats/facts: No Manchester City manager has ever won a Premier League match on his birthday. Pep Guardiola turns 48 tomorrow.
Odds: Palace win 28/1, Draw 10/1, City win 1/12
Probabilities via Google: Crystal Palace win 4%, Draw 8%, City win 88%
Prediction: Manchester City 4, Crystal Palace 2
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net, which is partnered with News Now. Banks, the author of “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry,” regularly appears on WGN CLTV and co-hosts the “Let’s Get Weird, Sports” podcast on SB Nation.
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