Manchester City take on West Ham in tricky midweek fixture
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Manchester City host West Ham on Wednesday night in what could be a tricky fixture for the Cityzens. Pep Guardiola’s team is coming off of a 180-minute Carabao Cup Final against Chelsea on Sunday. The Cityzens may have won on penalties, but there are now questions over how quickly they can rebound three days later.
Both teams go into the fixture unbeaten in their last three Premier League matches. Manuel Pellegrini’s Hammers have drawn twice and won once in their last three league games while Manchester City have managed a trio of victories. West Ham won at the weekend against relegation-threatened Fulham, 3-1, at home. The Hammers have not won any of their last four road matches, however. Three of which ended in defeat and West Ham were held to clean sheets in all three losses.
Pep Guardiola has released news of injuries following Manchester City’s cup triumph. According to reports on Tuesday, centre-back Aymeric Laporte and defensive midfielder Fernandinho will miss out on the game. It will leave two very big holes in Manchester City’s starting XI. Guardiola revealed the duo have muscle problems and Fernandinho’s injury is believed to be a groin issue.
Manchester City are one point behind Liverpool going into Wednesday night. While the Cityzens will be tested by West Ham, Liverpool also have a tricky fixture against high-flying Watford at Anfield. The matches will kick off at the same time and fans will be following the action from both stadiums.
West Ham will have had an extra day of rest by the time they kick off at the Etihad. Pellegrini’s team defeated Fulham on Friday night while Manchester City didn’t play until Sunday. The West Ham manager could have Fabian Balbuena back in the team. The centre-back has been sidelined for two months with a knee injury. Attacking midfielder Manuel Lanzini could also play a part. The Argentine, who missed eight months of football due to a pre-World Cup injury, played against Fulham.
Manchester City have won their last seven matches against West Ham in all competitions. All seven games featured more than 2.5 goals. West Ham last defeated Manchester City in 2015 at the Etihad Stadium, 2-1.
Although Wednesday night’s game will be a tricky one for Manchester City, they will come through with another win to keep pressure on Liverpool. Like their last seven meetings, the two clubs will combine for more than 2.5 goals as the Cityzens get a big league win.
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