Premier League: Rampaging Manchester City Hungry for More Blood

West Ham United vs Manchester City

Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City are currently top of the table and are well on pace for a second straight Premier League title. However, they know they can’t afford to stop until they have the trophy in their hands.

The Sky Blues have a chance to extend their two-point lead when they visit West Ham United at London Stadium, but they will be cautious of the fact that they are against a capable side that can spring a surprise when they find their stride.

West Ham enter Saturday with only three wins, though those three victories came against Manchester United, Everton and Burnley. Oh, and they were also the ones who stopped Chelsea’s five-game winning streak with a goalless draw last September!

Talking Points

Manchester City: A cut above the rest

Manchester City had a record-breaking season last year, and they continue to prove that they remain ahead of the pack with their dominant start to the season.

They are one of only three teams—together with second-placed Liverpool and third-placed Chelsea—to stay unbeaten in the English top flight, but what really took the Premier League 2018 news and headlines was the way they are playing.

Guardiola’s men have already scored 36 goals and conceded just five, and that puts them on pace to break last year’s tally of 106. Moreover, they are set to concede fewer strikes this season, showing how much improvement they have made on that end.

Even more remarkable, they are without their top assist king, Kevin De Bruyne, who has been out since early November due to a knee ligament damage.

The Sky Blues are nine goals ahead of Chelsea, the second-best scoring team in the league. City have a goal differential of 31, with Liverpool and Chelsea at 18 and 19 respectively.

Sergio Aguero and Raheem Sterling have been a huge part of the team’s success, with the former leading the league in scoring with eight goals on top of four assists. Sterling, meanwhile, has six markers and five deliveries.

Hammered with injuries

There were high expectations on the Hammers after manager Manuel Pellegrini was handed “record funds” to bolster the team over the summer. Nonetheless, they lost four straight to start the season and still haven’t recovered from it.

West Ham aim to get the win as they look to climb up the Premier League table — West Ham’s Jack Wilshere battles for the ball against Wolverhampton Wanderers midfielder Ruben Neves

West Ham are currently in 13th place and are way off the battle for the European places. They have only scored 14 times in their top-flight campaign, all while allowing opponents to hit a total of 18 goals on them.

It didn’t help them that they struggled with plenty of injuries at the start of the season. In fact, in this meeting with Manchester City, they have five players who are out due to injuries.

Manuel Lanzini (ACL), Andriy Yarmolenko (Achilles), Carlos Sanchez (knee) and Winston Reid (knee) are long-term absentees and still have no clear timetable for a return. Meanwhile, full-back Ryan Fredericks has been ruled out for the remainder of 2018 after sustaining a shin injury against Huddersfield Town in their last game.

Fortunately for West Ham, Jack Wilshere and Andy Carroll could make their return just in time for the fight with the reigning champions. Wilshere started the first four matches of the season for the Hammers before undergoing ankle surgery in September.

Carroll, on the other hand, is yet to feature for West Ham (and play under Pellegrini) after also going under the knife to repair his ankle.

Legacy battle for Manuel Pellegrini

One often overshadowed storyline in this game is Pellegrini’s connection with Manchester City. The Chilean manager engineered City’s epic run in the 2013-14 campaign, helping the team win just their second Premier League title.

However, with the club’s rise and massive improvement under Guardiola, his legacy is in danger.

Sure enough, Pellegrini can do little to stop the Sky Blues and their domination, but he can get some respectability in this game and prove that he’s still a coach that can hold his ground in the premiership, against the younger managers today.

History

Last year, the then David Moyes-coached West Ham lost their home-and-away fixtures against Manchester City.

Manchester City won 2-1 at the Etihad in their first meeting, though the Hammers put up a fight back then and even led by halftime.

The second match, at London Stadium, was different though. The Sky Blues scored two goals both sides of the interval, with Leroy Sane, Gabriel Jesus and Fernandinho all scoring.

Overall, the two sides have played 34 Premier League matches: City won 19, West Ham nine and six draws.

Betting Tip

	West Ham United vs Manchester City	Under 3.00 @ 2.29
	November 24, 23:00 (GMT+8)

Premier League 2018 odds point to an overwhelming win for City. In fact, SBOBET gives West Ham a huge plus handicap just to even it up.

There’s no doubt Manchester City will win this one. The only question is: by how many goals?

I think Pellegrini will try to lessen the damage here. City’s offence is something to be feared, and I believe West Ham will focus on their defence to slow Guardiola’s men a bit. After all, there’s pride at stake here.

With that said, I predict one to two goals for City—perhaps a 0-2 win.