Manchester City are no strangers to top of the table clashes. The two-time champions have jumped out of the gate to collect maximum points in their first four games, which includes an emphatic win over champions Chelsea. However, their 100 percent start is under some threat as they visit second-place Crystal Palace, who also defeated Chelsea in their last outing.
Line: Crystal Palace +411 vs. Manchester City -193, tie +290; total 3.0 – view all EPL lines
Betting on Crystal Palace
Alan Pardew’s very positive, attacking style of play is paying dividends for Crystal Palace in the early going. The Eagles have soared to second place in the standings, with three wins and one loss, which came against Arsenal. In their last outing prior to the international break, they went into Stamford Bridge and beat the defending champions Chelsea, 2-1.
[sc:Soccer240banner ]Palace play one way, and that’s to go forward. There won’t be any sitting back from the Eagles; instead, expect them to have an honest go at City, especially as the home team. That’s a high-risk/high-reward gameplan against a team as talented as City, but Palace have the ability to make that gamble pay off.
Palace’s wing play has been a staple of their strong start, with Bakary Sako (who scored the opening goal against Chelsea and set up the other), Yannick Bolasie and Wilfried Zaha taking their turn terrorizing opposing fullbacks.
Look for them to come at City through the wings, particular through the left flank, where City right-back Bacary Sagna could be limited due to injury, if he can play at all.
Palace can also hold their own in the middle of the park. Jason Puncheon functioned well in a more central role against Arsenal, and should provide an extra body to keep the Eagles competitive in that part of the pitch.
Puncheon scored the winning goal for Palace in their 2-1 win over City in this fixture last season.
Manchester City have been absolutely perfect through their first four games. The early leaders have won all four of their games by at least two clear goals. All in all, they’ve scored 10 goals with none conceded. Dating back to last season, City have now won their last 10 Premier League matches.
Record signing Raheem Sterling opened his goal scoring account in their 2-0 win against Watford last time out. He, David Silva, Jesus Navas and Sergio Aguero have formed a formidable front four, with Fernandinho and Yaya Toure also providing support from midfield.
The team’s mostly settled line-up is due for a bit of a shakeup with the injury to David Silva, but they have a ready-made replacement with their latest star signing, Kevin De Bruyne. The incredibly talented Belgian was named Germany’s Player of the Year for last season after he recorded 10 goals and 20 assists for Wolfsburg.
De Bruyne should take up his favored central role in place of Silva, and should be able to create sufficient goal scoring opportunities against a Palace defense that has failed to keep a clean sheet so far this season. City’s attacking fullbacks can also neutralize Palace’s threat on the flanks by forcing the Palace wingers to defend for long periods.
Meanwhile, look for Yaya Toure to play a decisive role in this match. Toure, who has had a magnificent start to the season, has scored in City’s last three games against Palace. City have won three of their last four matches against Palace, with just two goals conceded in those games.
Writer’s Prediction
City (-193) have too much firepower offensively as they continue their perfect start with a 3-1 away win.
