Reigning English, European and world champions Manchester City will endeavour to end a memorable 2023 on a high when they welcome Sheffield United to the Etihad Stadium for a Premier League clash on Saturday.
The two teams meet for the first time since the end of August when an 88th-minute strike from Rodri sealed a 2-1 victory for the Citizens at Bramall Lane.
Match preview
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Five days on from becoming Club World Cup champions for the first time in their history, Manchester City returned to winning ways in the Premier League when they came from behind to beat Everton 3-1 at Goodison Park on Wednesday night.
For the seventh time this season, the Citizens were trailing 1-0 courtesy of a first-half strike from former employee Jack Harrison, but second-half goals from Phil Foden, Julian Alvarez and Bernardo Silva helped Pep Guardiola's side claim maximum points against the Toffees and climb back into the top four, at the time of writing, as well as move to within five points of leaders Liverpool.
Following a dip in form between the end of November and beginning of December, Man City have since won five and drawn one of their last six games in all competitions, but defensive frailties remain as they have conceded in each of their last eight Premier League matches, an unwanted record run since the arrival of Guardiola back in 2016.
Man City enter Saturday's contest having drawn each of their last three top-flight matches at the Etihad, throwing away a total of six points from winning positions during this period, but Guardiola and co will be confident of success in front of their own fans against Sheffield United.
Indeed, the Citizens have not lost any of their previous 11 Premier League meetings with the Blades, winning each of their last six in the process, while they have only lost their final league fixture in just one of the last 22 calendar years.
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Sheffield United were on course to claim their second successive home win under Chris Wilder in last weekend's clash with fellow strugglers Luton Town as goals from Oli McBurnie and Anel Ahmedhodzic cancelled out an earlier opener from Alfie Doughty.
However, four days after letting a winning position slip late on in a 1-1 draw at Aston Villa, the Blades "chucked away" their advantage once again versus the Hatters, according to Wilder, as two own goals from Jack Robinson and Anis Ben Slimane turned the game on its head in the final 13 minutes to condemn the hosts to a 3-2 defeat – their 14th of the season.
Boasting just nine points from 19 top-flight matches, Sheffield United remain rooted to the foot of the table and now sit seven points adrift of safety at the halfway stage following Nottingham Forest's win at Newcastle United.
Sheffield United have conceded the most goals (47) in the Premier League so far this season, conceding at least twice on 14 occasions, and they remain at the top of the pile even if you exclude September's 8-0 hammering by Newcastle; they are also yet to keep a clean sheet away from home this term.
The Blades have struggled to come out on top in previous meetings with Man City, but they have shown their resilient side to some degree in recent years as they have only been beaten by a one-goal margin in five of their last six league encounters against the Citizens, which will provide Wilder with a glimmer of hope that his side can at least deliver a competitive display at the Etihad on Saturday.
Team News
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Man City's John Stones was forced off in the first half of Wednesday's win at Everton with an ankle injury, and Guardiola has since confirmed that the defender will not be fit to feature this weekend.
Erling Haaland (foot), Kevin De Bruyne (hamstring) and Jeremy Doku (muscle) also remain sidelined, but Ruben Dias is expected to return to the matchday squad as he has taken part in training this week after missing the trip to Everton through illness.
The potential return of Dias to the first XI could see the Portuguese replace Stones in central defence, while Josko Gvardiol will push to start ahead of Nathan Ake on the left side of a back four.
Rico Lewis and Mateo Kovacic are in contention to replace Matheus Nunes in centre-midfield, while Bernardo, Foden and Jack Grealish are all set to continue in behind central striker Alvarez.
As for Sheffield United, Chris Basham (ankle), John Egan (foot), Tom Davies (thigh) and Daniel Jebbison (illness) all remain in the treatment room, while Ahmedhodzic and Gustavo Hamer are both suspended for Saturday's game due to an accumulation of yellow cards.
Man City loanee James McAtee is also unavailable as he is ineligible to face his parent club, but Jayden Bogle is set to return after serving a one-match ban last time out, and he could start at right wing-back if Wilder switches to a five-man defence, with George Baldock potentially moving into central defence alongside Robinson and Auston Trusty.
In the absence of Hamer, Wilder could start Oliver Norwood in a three-man midfield alongside Vinicius Souza and Andre Brooks, while Cameron Archer and McBurnie link up in attack.
Manchester City possible starting lineup:
Ederson; Walker, Akanji, Dias, Ake; Lewis, Rodri; Bernardo, Foden, Grealish; Alvarez
Sheffield United possible starting lineup:
Foderingham; Bogle, Baldock, Robinson, Trusty, Lowe; Souza, Norwood, Brooks; Archer, McBurnie
We say: Manchester City 3-0 Sheffield United
Man City will unsurprisingly be regarded as firm favourites to claim maximum points on Saturday, even without star striker Haaland against a Sheffield United outfit who have struggled all season to keep the ball out of the back of their own net.
The Blades intend to frustrate the hosts as they have done in previous seasons, but the Citizens should ultimately find a way to breach their backline and cruise to a comfortable victory this time around.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Oliver Thomas
