Stoke vs Manchester City Prediction and Preview – 05/12/15
Premier League preview – Stoke vs Manchester City prediction
Stoke defender Marc Muniesa will be assessed to see if he’s ready to return from the hamstring injury which has kept him out since late October. Ryan Shawcross is eligible after serving his one-match suspension for the red card received in the 2-0 defeat at Sunderland last Saturday. Peter Crouch’s place on the bench is in doubt after reporting a hamstring injury on Monday while Peter Odemwingie and Shay Given remained sidelined.
Manchester City striker Sergio Aguero is nursing a knock on the ankle which curtailed his involvement in the 3-1 win against Southampton and will undergo a fitness test along with Joe Hart who is near to full recovery from his hamstring problems. Vincent Kompany, Fernando, Pablo Zabaleta and Jesus Navas are all doubtful for this weekend while Samir Nasri may not be seen until nearer the end of the season.
Possible Line-ups
Stoke: 4-2-3-1 formation: Butland; Johnson, Shawcross, Wollschieid, Pieters; Whelan, Adam; Shaqiri, Bojan, Arnautovic; Walters
Manchester City: 4-2-3-1 formation: Hart; Sagna, Demichelis, Otamendi, Kolarov; Fernandinho, Toure; Da Silva, De Bruyne, Sterling; Aguero
Statistics
- Stoke have won 6, drawn 2 and lost 2 of their last 10 matches
- Manchester City have won 6, drawn 2 and lost 2 of their last 10 matches
- Over the course of their previous 10 matches, Stoke have scored an average of 0.9 goals and conceded an average of 0.6 goals per game
- Over the course of their previous 10 matches, Manchester City have scored an average of 2 goals and conceded an average of 1.1 goals per game
- There have been over 2.5 goals scored in 1 of Stoke’s previous 10 matches
- There have been over 2.5 goals scored in 7 of Manchester City’s previous 10 matches
Prediction
Stoke have won two home games this season with Liverpool, West Brom and Watford all leaving the Britannia Stadium with maximum points. The Potters remain capable of making it tough for the big boys as shown when defeating Chelsea 1-0 at home and snatching a 2-2 draw with Tottenham in late comeback at White Hart Lane in August. However they’ve not won at home to Manchester City since their return to the top flight in 2008-09 and were soundly beaten 4-1 in this fixture last season.
Manchester City returned to the top of the Premier League after defeating Southampton 3-1 at Etihad Stadium on Saturday and progressed to the semi-finals of the League Cup with an easy 4-1 victory over Hull City in midweek. Manuel Pellegrini’s men have failed to score in their last two away games, playing out draws at Manchester United and Aston Villa, and the manager will be looking for a brighter performance on the trip to the Midlands.
City’s main title rivals have winnable games this weekend which should give Pellegrini’s side all the motivation it needs to take the three points to guarantee remaining top of the pile for another week at least.
Tips
Manchester City win at 7/10 with William Hill
Under 2.5 goals at 12/11 with Marathonbet
Manchester City to win 1-0 at 15/2 with BetVictor
What are your predictions?
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