Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur will be eager to return to winning ways when they meet at the Etihad on Thursday.
The elongated Gameweek 20 of the 2022/23 Premier League season will finally culminate on Thursday. Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur will face off in a game that was originally scheduled for Gameweek 7. But the passing of Queen Elizabeth II postponed the fixture, with the other such match featuring Crystal Palace and Manchester United on Wednesday.
The 2022/23 season thus far has seen Manchester City perform inconsistently, especially in domestic football. The Citizens have dropped points in a third of their 18 Premier League games thus far. And they are also out of the Carabao Cup after Southampton beat them in the quarter-finals. The most recent setback came against Manchester United, who came from behind to beat Manchester City 2-1 on Saturday.
On the other hand, Tottenham Hotspur’s campaign is spiralling out of control. Antonio Conte’s men are struggling to string together a run of wins, thereby dropping in the standings. Since the resumption of the 2022/23 season, the north Londoners have managed only one Premier League win in four attempts. And the latest setback came in the North London Derby.
The corresponding fixture last season saw Tottenham eke out a narrow 3-2 win over Manchester City, with Harry Kane scoring a late winner. The Hard Tackle takes a closer look at the encounter ahead of the latest meeting between the two sides.
Team News & Tactics
Manchester City
💪 @rubendias 💪 pic.twitter.com/NSPLK8ElHA
— Manchester City (@ManCity) January 17, 2023
Pep Guardiola does not have any new injury concerns hampering his preparations ahead of the game against Tottenham Hotspur. The Manchester City manager will likely be without two first-team players on Thursday.
Ruben Dias (hamstring) and John Stones (knock) remain on the sidelines due to their respective issues. But there is some good news as both players have resumed training. And they should be in contention to represent Manchester City in the coming games.
Neither centre-back will start against Tottenham. So Manuel Akanji and Aymeric Laporte should form the central defensive pairing. Rico Lewis should return to the starting eleven after a sub-par display by Kyle Walker. But Joao Cancelo should continue on the left flank.
Ilkay Gundogan will hope to return to the starting eleven to shore up the midfield. Manchester United outplayed Manchester City on Saturday, and Guardiola will want to avoid a repeat against Tottenham. So the German international will line up alongside Rodri and Kevin De Bruyne in the middle of the park.
Bernardo Silva will thus move to the right-wing berth, where he will hope to torment Ivan Perisic. Jack Grealish will likely return after scoring against Manchester United. Finally, Erling Haaland will be eager to end his mini drought after failing to score in the last two games.
Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Ederson; Lewis, Akanji, Laporte, Cancelo; Gundogan, Rodri, De Bruyne; Silva, Haaland, Grealish
Tottenham Hotspur
Like his counterpart in the Manchester City dugout, Antonio Conte has greeted a positive update on the team news front ahead of the trip to the Etihad. The Tottenham Hotspur manager will be without only one first-team player on Thursday.
Rodrigo Bentancur should be available after resuming training. So Lucas Moura is the only player on the sidelines due to a calf injury. Conte otherwise has a full-strength squad at his disposal this midweek.
Hugo Lloris’s catastrophic error paved the way for Tottenham to lose to Arsenal in the North London Derby. But the Tottenham captain should retain his spot between the sticks, with the visitors lining up in a 3-4-3 formation in front of him.
“To win against Manchester City you need to not make mistakes” 🗣
Antonio Conte faced the media ahead of #MCITOT ⤵️
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) January 17, 2023
Cristian Romero needs more consistent partners in the central defensive unit. But the Argentine international will have to make do with Eric Dier and Ben Davies for now as his partners. Matt Doherty and Ivan Perisic should be the two wing-backs.
The duo will drop deep to form a back five in the defensive phases to deny the Manchester City creators some space. At the same time, they will be crucial when the north Londoners move into the final third. The returning Bentancur should line up alongside Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg in the middle of the park.
Harry Kane has been a rare bright spot in the Tottenham attack. And the Englishman will lead the line against Manchester City on Thursday. Finally, Son Heung-min and Dejan Kulusevski should support Kane in the attacking third.
Probable Lineup (3-4-3): Lloris; Romero, Dier, Davies; Doherty, Hojbjerg, Bentancur, Perisic; Kulusevski, Kane, Son
Key Stats
- Manchester City have lost four of their last five Premier League games against Tottenham (W1), as many as they had in their previous 19 against them (W12 D3). Tottenham won home and away against Manchester City in the Premier League last season, accounting for 67% of the Citizens’ total league defeats. They could become the first-ever team to win three consecutive league matches against a side managed by Pep Guardiola.
- Tottenham have won four of their last nine away league games against reigning top-flight champions (D2 L3), as many as in their previous 49 such games. Four of Manchester City’s 29 defeats as reigning Premier League champions have come against Tottenham. No side has beaten them more.
- Manchester City have failed to win both of their last two Premier League games at the Etihad Stadium (D1 L1). They last went three without a win at home in the league in December 2016 (a run of four), which remains the only time Pep Guardiola has failed to win 3+ consecutive home league matches in his managerial career.
- Harry Kane is two goals away from becoming the third player to score 200 Premier League goals, along with Alan Shearer (260) and Wayne Rooney (208). Three of his four goals against Manchester City in the competition have been at the Etihad Stadium, including a brace in the 3-2 win last season.
Player to Watch
Erling Haaland
Erling Haaland has taken the Premier League by storm. And he has arguably been the best striker in the world this season. But the Norwegian international has not been at his devastating best since the season resumed last month.
Haaland has failed to score in his last two Premier League appearances, the first time he has gone more than one game without a goal in the competition. Only once in the big five European leagues has he gone 3+ games without scoring. And the youngster will hope to rediscover his best to guide Manchester City back to winning ways against Tottenham.
Prediction
Manchester City 2-1 Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham had been the Achilles Heel for Manchester City in the 2022/23 season. But things have changed considerably in the last six months (read, the arrival of Erling Haaland). While Haaland has not been as influential as he would have liked in the last few games, he is still a game-changer.
The Norwegian international should rise to the occasion to deliver the three points for his side on Thursday. But Tottenham will not go down without a fight and will look to exploit Manchester City’s soft underbelly. Expect a hard-fought encounter, with the Citizens eking out a narrow 2-1 win at the Etihad.
