Manchester City take on the visitors Crystal Palace in the round 17 match of English Premier League. The match will be played on Saturday, December 16th at Etihad Stadium (Manchester).
Even on our website, there have been loud comments about Manchester City losing their edge and so on. However, no team is immune to a temporary setback, no matter how strong it may be. Especially considering the schedule that the Citizens had: consecutive matches against Chelsea (4-4), Liverpool (1-1), Leipzig (3-2), Southampton (3-3), and Aston Villa (0-1). Guardiola's team experienced a slight dip, resulting in them currently occupying the fourth position in the Premier League table. But there is no doubt that this setback is a temporary phenomenon, which may have already ended. After the defeat in Birmingham, the Sky Blues first defeated Luton Town (2-1) in the championship and then defeated Serbian Red Star in the Champions League (3-2) without any tournament motivation. Yes, both victories were not convincing in terms of the score, but the upcoming home match against Crystal Palace are an excellent chance to convince all skeptics that Manchester City are still the main contender for the gold medals in England.
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The current Eagles are far from Tottenham, Liverpool, Aston Villa, and even Chelsea. Competing against Guardiola's team is unlikely to be within their capabilities. At the moment, Crystal Palace are showing its level, sitting only in 15th place in the Premier League table. In the last five rounds, they managed to secure just one point through a draw. In the other four matches of this period, the Londoners suffered defeats to Liverpool (1-2), Everton (2-3), and even Luton Town (1-2). They also lost to Bournemouth with a score of 0-2 at home. Crystal Palace have experienced defeats with a margin of more than one goal this season, particularly away matches against Aston Villa (1-3) and Newcastle (0-4). It would hardly be surprising if Roy Hodgson's team loses to the reigning country champions by two or more goals on away territory. Regardless of Manchester City's current form, the gap between them and Crystal Palace are enormous.
Last season, the visit of the Eagles to the Etihad did not end well for them; the hosts secured a victory (4-2). I believe that the handicap (-1.5) for the favorite should play without problems this time as well. Crystal Palace looks weak this season, having suffered defeats in exactly half of their matches. Manchester City are sportingly upset due to their recent Premier League results, plus Guardiola's wards have the motivation to return to the top 3 of the table; it is unacceptable for the country's champion to be so low. There are hardly any questions about the superiority of the Citizens over the Eagles in terms of class. Regardless of whether the visitors receive a defeat here, facing the reigning Champions League winners, I predict a comfortable victory for Manchester City with a margin of at least two goals.
Prediction for the match: Manchester City to win with -2.0 handicap.
