Manchester City vs. Southampton: Match Preview, Odds & Prediction

When Manchester City host Southampton at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday, they'll be hoping to move up the Premier League standings. Southampton is currently in a slump.

In April 2023, Erling Haaland scored twice as St. Mary's defeated the visiting squad 4-1 in the top division. This will be the first meeting between the two clubs since then.

Previous Matches and Head-to-head

Following last weekend's 2-1 Premier League triumph against Wolverhampton Wanderers, in which Manchester City needed a late goal to secure all three points, Manchester City strolled to a 5-0 Champions League victory at home against Sparta Prague on Wednesday night.

In the third minute, Phil Foden put the Citizens ahead. The hosts took control of the affair in the second half, scoring three goals in as many minutes. After John Stones's header and two goals from Erling Haaland—one of which was a fantastic backheel volley—Matheus Nunes, who had a remarkable day, scored a penalty in stoppage time to make it five.

After three games, Pep Guardiola's squad has climbed to third place in the 36-team UCL table with seven points. They have also broken Manchester United's record of 25 games unbeaten in the competition, becoming the first team in European Cup/Champions League history to accomplish this feat.

Man City must return their attention to the Premier League, where they are undefeated after eight matches, before their upcoming November trip to Sporting Lisbon on matchday four. After Sunday's match between third-place Arsenal and current leaders Liverpool, the Citizens will take over first place with a win against Southampton. Both teams now have 17 points.

With a 31-game unbeaten Premier League streak, Man City will be confident going into Saturday's match against Southampton. The Citizens have won 10 of their past 13 games in the league and are undefeated in 12 meetings at Etihad Stadium (W10 D2).

With one tie and seven losses since being promoted from the Championship last season, Southampton is one of four clubs in the English top division who have yet to win any of their first eight games. This is a first for the league.

The Saints were well-positioned to earn their first three points of the season last Saturday when Joe Aribo and Cameron Archer doubled their advantage before halftime against Leicester City. But the Foxes pulled off a stunning second-half comeback, culminating in a thrilling 98th-minute winner, to completely flip the script and earn a 3-2 triumph at St. Mary's.

Despite mounting pressure on head coach Russell Martin, the 38-year-old is allegedly not being immediately replaced by the club's leadership, as Southampton have now gone 21 Premier League games without a victory (D5 L16).

Having failed to win any of their first nine league matches since 1998–99 (nine), Southampton enter Saturday's encounter aiming to avoid falling to 19th in the Premier League standings with only one point, but just three points away from safety.

Saints fans will be hoping for a miracle against Man City on Sunday. In their last 14 Premier League meetings against City, they've only managed a single victory, a 1-0 home win in July 2020. The last time they were victorious at the Etihad Stadium was in April 2004, when they were coached by Paul Sturrock and won 3-1.

Manchester City x Southampton Team News

In addition to Rodri (ACL), Oscar Bobb (leg fracture), Kevin De Bruyne (groin), and Kyle Walker (knee), Man City will also be missing Jeremy Doku (muscle) and Jack Grealish (knock).

With his roster slashed to the bone, Guardiola can only afford to make a few changes for Saturday's match. However, he is anticipated to bring back a few starters, such as Ederson, Josko Gvardiol, and Mateo Kovacic.

Matheus Nunes, who scored once and assisted twice in midweek, may get another start in a replacement role on the left wing, with Savinho moving to the right and Bernardo Silva and Phil Foden playing advanced midfield roles behind Haaland, the centre striker.

On the other hand, Southampton will be without Ryan Fraser (suspended), Gavin Bazunu (Achilles), Ross Stewart (muscle), and William Smallbone (hamstring). Yukinari Sugawara (unspecified) is also questionable after being substituted early in the match against Leicester.

On the other hand, the Saints get to welcome back Jack Stephens after a three-match suspension; he is a contender to start in central defence with Jan Bednarek and Taylor Harwood-Bellis, formerly at Man City.

Midfielders Joe Aribo, Flynn Downes, and Mateus Fernandes might reunite while emerging sensation Tyler Dibling would likely start up front alongside Cameron Archer, who has scored twice in his past two Premier League outings.

Our Predictions

Over 4.5 goals @ 2.60 on Sky247.ng

Even if Man City were to fall behind, you would still back them to respond because they have gained a league-high 13 points from losing positions this term, while Southampton have lost more points (231) from winning positions than any other top-flight team since the 2012-13 campaign. This is because Man City's defence has been far from watertight in the Premier League this season, which should give Southampton a chance.

Even without a few key players, Guardiola and co. They will still be considered heavy favourites to win the match, and they should have no trouble scoring more goals than their opponents to recover first position in the Premier League.

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