Manchester City will aim to remain atop the Premier League table when they welcome West Ham United to the Etihad on Wednesday.
The 2022/23 Premier League season rolls along, with the elongated Gameweek 34 continuing on Wednesday. Manchester City will be in action a day after Arsenal and Chelsea lock horns. And the reigning Premier League champions will be eager to consolidate their place atop the table when they welcome West Ham United to the Etihad.
2022/23 has thus far been a season unlike most campaigns for Manchester City under Pep Guardiola. The Citizens have played the waiting game to pounce and take the lead in the title race. And with Arsenal slipping up in the last few weeks, the defending champions have capitalised to sit atop the table heading into the midweek fixtures. And Guardiola will want to see his team win every game until the end of term.
On the other hand, West Ham United will end the recent run of ending a season with European qualification. The Hammers have struggled considerably for much of their Premier League campaign. But they have picked up their form in the past few weeks, losing only two of their last seven games. However, the defeats have come in most recent outings.
The reverse fixture saw Manchester City grab a 2-0 win over West Ham United, with Erling Haaland scoring a match-winning brace. The Hard Tackle takes a closer look at the encounter ahead of the latest meeting between the two sides.
Team News & Tactics
Manchester City
🔙 to business! 😎 pic.twitter.com/pAuPfn18YJ
— Manchester City (@ManCity) May 1, 2023
Pep Guardiola does not have any new injury concerns hampering his preparations ahead of his side’s latest fixture. Against West Ham United on Wednesday, the Manchester City manager will be bereft of the services of two first-team players.
Kevin De Bruyne is the most notable absentee, with the Belgian international recovering from a knock. While Guardiola has not ruled out the Belgian international from Wednesday’s game, he will likely remain unavailable. Meanwhile, Nathan Ake is also on the sidelines due to a hamstring injury.
Guardiola will line Manchester City up in a 4-2-3-1 formation on Wednesday, with Ederson Moraes picking himself between the sticks. And the backline will consist of Kyle Walker, John Stones, Ruben Dias, and Manuel Akanji. But the system will morph into a 3-2-4-1 during certain phases.
That is when Walker will become a wing-back, with Stones, Dias, and Akanji forming a back three. Meanwhile, Rodri and Ilkay Gundogan will pair up in the double pivot. The duo will provide an added layer of protection to the backline while pushing the hosts forward on transitions.
Jack Grealish will be the other “wing-back” when the formation changes. But he will act as a left winger, with Julian Alvarez and Phil Foden pushing forward from the central areas. Finally, Erling Haaland will spearhead the Manchester City attack against West Ham on Wednesday.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Ederson; Walker, Stones, Dias, Akanji; Rodri, Gundogan; Foden, Alvarez, Grealish; Haaland
West Ham United
Like his counterpart in the Manchester City dugout, David Moyes does not have many pressing issues to deal with ahead of the trip to the Etihad. And the West Ham United manager will be without two first-team players on Wednesday.
Kurt Zouma (ankle) and Gianluca Scamacca (knee) remain on the sidelines and will not feature this midweek. And while Scamacca has already played his last game of the 2022/23 season, Zouma should return to action in a couple of weeks.
Lukasz Fabianski is an automatic pick between the sticks, with West Ham lining up in a 3-5-2 formation in front of him. The system will morph into a 5-4-1 during the defensive phases, with West Ham looking to absorb the pressure from the waves of Manchester City attacks.
A midweek trip to Manchester awaits 👊#WHUFC | @huboofulfilment pic.twitter.com/2s1YdL1wFY
— West Ham United (@WestHam) May 2, 2023
With Zouma unavailable, there is no looking past Thilo Kehrer, Nayef Aguerd, and Angelo Ogbonna as the three centre-backs. The trio will aim to remain compact and deny Erling Haaland any space to exploit.
Vladimir Coufal and Aaron Cresswell will be the two wing-backs. But they will remain pinned back for the most part while having sparse opportunities to maraud forward and express themselves. The duo will also flank the three central midfielders when the visitors bomb up the pitch.
Tomas Soucek showed superb against Crystal Palace and will be eager to continue his good form. The Czech midfielder will pose a threat during set-piece situations with his aerial ability. And he will also provide defensive solidity, along with Declan Rice and Lucas Paqueta.
Meanwhile, Paqueta will have dual responsibilities and will need to provide the forward thrust during transitions. That will bring the two attackers into the game, with Michail Antonio being the poacher and Jarrod Bowen attacking Manchester City with his directness.
Probable Lineup (3-5-2): Fabianski; Kehrer, Aguerd, Ogbonna; Coufal, Soucek, Rice, Paqueta, Cresswell; Bowen, Antonio
Key Stats
- Manchester City are unbeaten in 14 Premier League games against West Ham United (W11 D3) since a 2-1 home defeat in September 2015.
- Manchester City have scored at least once in their last 30 Premier League home games (100 goals in total) since a 2-0 loss to Crystal Palace in October 2021. The Citizens have won their last seven at the Etihad, scoring at least twice each time.
- Manchester City have won 10 of their last 11 Premier League matches (D1), although they have conceded in nine of those games. They have only kept a clean sheet in 31% of their league games this season (10/32), their lowest ratio since 2009/10 (29%).
- West Ham United have scored six goals from corners in their last six Premier League games, two more than they had in their previous 27 matches this season (4).
- Erling Haaland has scored 21 home goals in the Premier League this season. The last player to net more in a single campaign was Thierry Henry in 2003/04 (22 at Highbury).
Player to Watch
Julian Alvarez
While Erling Haaland has been shining under the spotlight, several other Manchester City players have quietly enjoyed superb campaigns. One such star is Julian Alvarez, who has already enjoyed a memorable season after winning the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
The Argentine international has not had many opportunities to be the focal point for Manchester City this season. But he has delivered the goods more often than not. And he was the biggest factor in Manchester City’s battling win over Fulham this past weekend. Another such performance should help Alvarez nail down his spot ahead of some crucial games in the coming weeks.
Prediction
Manchester City 3-1 West Ham United
Manchester City might have struggled to put away Fulham on the weekend. But the game on Wednesday should be relatively more straightforward for the defending Premier League champions. The hosts are too strong at the Etihad, picking up more home points than any other team in the top flight.
In addition, Manchester City will face one of the worst travellers in the Premier League this season, West Ham United. The Hammers have picked up just 12 points from 16 games on the road this term, managing only three wins. But with Manchester City struggling to keep clean sheets, the visitors should find a way past Ederson Moraes.
However, that might only be a consolation strike, with Erling Haaland and Julian Alvarez likely to run riot at the Etihad. The Hard Tackle thus predicts a 3-1 win for Pep Guardiola and his charges, keeping them at the top of the Premier League.
