Paul Merson now predicts who’s winning out of Manchester City and Chelsea
Manchester City return to Premier League action this weekend – and fans are hoping to see a 12th straight win at the Etihad Stadium against Chelsea.
Fresh from beating Copenhagen 3-1 in the Champions League on Tuesday, City are gearing up to face Mauricio Pochettino’s Blues.
The reverse fixture in December at Stamford Bridge was one of the games of the season so far, with the teams sharing the spoils in a 4-4 draw.
Chelsea are very erratic this season under Pochettino, but they do have Cole Palmer of course.
The star has been outstanding since making his move from City to the Blues last summer, and Pep Guardiola will be hoping to keep home quiet on his first appearance back at the Etihad.
Paul Merson makes prediction for Manchester City vs Chelsea
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No sooner had City had all their players available, there are now a few injuries in the camp ahead of this game.
Josko Gvardiol – who struggled in the reverse fixture – has sustained ankle ligament damage and will be on the sidelines for a few weeks.
Bernardo Silva suffered a big knock on Tuesday and is possibly racing to be fit, while Jack Grealish limped out against Copenhagen with a muscular problem.
But City still have a solid squad for this weekend, and Paul Merson does not foresee any issues for the home team.
Predicting a 3-2 win for the hosts, he said (Sportskeeda): “What Chelsea are turning up? If someone knows, let me know and I’ll predict this one accordingly. They are so hard to predict! Mauricio Pochettino’s side will give everything and scored two late goals to get a smash-and-grab win against Palace. They were horrible in the first half but slowly grew into the game after the interval and that game typifies their season.
“They have enough to hurt City, but the home side are just on another level, especially at this stage of the season. They are coming on the back of a 3-1 away win against Copenhagen in the UEFA Champions League and could even afford to rest a few players for the return leg, so Pep Guardiola’s complete focus will be on this game.
“It’ll be an entertaining game played at a nice level, but I think City will come out on top.”
A big chance for three points, but Chelsea’s biggest danger is obvious
City are in tremendous form at the moment, having won their last 11 games in all competitions.
Fans are expectant ahead of this one, with Chelsea having largely disappointed this season – currently, they lie 10th in the Premier League.
That said, they still have some real threats.
City fans obviously know all about Raheem Sterling’s ability, but without any doubt, it’s Cole Palmer who City really need to be wary of.
Palmer has scored 12 goals and made nine assists so far this term for Chelsea and has been the Blues’ best player, and he obviously knows how all of City’s stars operate. Key to a result this weekend will be keeping him as quiet as possible.
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