Man City vs Liverpool: Preview and Prediction

Published by William | Filed under Football (aka soccer), Predictions, Premier League, Previews

Champions League hopefuls Manchester City and Liverpool hook up this Sunday for an important league fixture.

Follow the action as it unfolds with WSN’s Livescore!


2/21 15:00 GMT Liverpool at Manchester City – Odds | Stats


Champions League hopefuls Liverpool and Manchester City hook up this Sunday at the Eastlands for an extremely important fixture that could ultimately determine who is playing in European competition next year and who is not. Both are pretty much out of title contention for the year and look to salvage what are by their standards, disappointing seasons.


Manchester City:


Since losing their highly anticipated League Cup semifinal return leg against rivals Manchester United, the Citizens have faltered a bit in recent weeks losing to bottomfeeders Hull City and having successive draws to Stoke City. What surely hasn’t helped their cause has been the absence of striker and leading goal scorer Carlos Tevez who has been away on compassionate leave after the tragic and untimely death of his second daughter. He is expected to miss the match this weekend as he is still with his family in Argentina. Looking to pick up the slack is fellow attacker Emmanuel Adebayor who seems to finally be getting back to form after being away on compassionate leave as well after the attacks suffered on his Togolese National team at the African Cup of Nations. He netted last week against Bolton and looks to do the same again this week. Likely to replace the absent Carlos Tevez is Craig Bellamy who has been recovering from a knee injury himself. Also missing Sunday’s fixture is recently acquired Patrick Vieira who is serving the first of a 3-game suspension.


Liverpool:


Liverpool has somehow managed to turn the poor start to their season around as they now sit only one point behind City in 5th place. The Reds have been truly plagued by injuries all season long and are just now starting to get their normal lineup back in tact, although they are still without striker Fernando Torres and fullback Glen Johnson (both knee). A loss here, while it is not the end of their season, could be very detrimental to their chances for a top 4 finish which would surely put Rafa Benitez’s job in jeopardy. Forward Dirk Kuyt has been consistently a bright spot for the struggling Reds as he scored 10 goals (9 league) and will look to do so again this Sunday.


Match Facts:


-Manchester City is unbeaten in all competitions at home this season.


-Liverpool is unbeaten in their last 9 competitions against Manchester City.


-Liverpool has won only 1 of their last 6 matches away and failed to score in 4 of them.


Prediction:


This one is extremely tough for me to call. Without Carlos Tevez, I’m not sure Manchester City will pose the same threat to score as they normally do. However, City has been remarkable at home where Liverpool hasn’t been away from Anfield. I think it will be a hard fought, exciting affair but it will ultimately and unfortunately end up in a draw.


Pick:


Liverpool 1 – 1 Manchester City


Bet of the Match:


Draw at 3.30 from Ladbrokes