Reigning Premier League champions Manchester City can momentarily move above title rivals Liverpool to the top of the table if they beat Everton at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday lunchtime.
The Citizens came from behind to secure a 3-1 victory at Brentford on Monday, while the Toffees snatched a point in a 2-2 draw with Tottenham Hotspur two days earlier.
Match preview
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After losing both home and away meetings to Brentford last season, Man City were staring down the barrel at another potential defeat against the Bees as Neal Maupay's breakaway goal midway through the first half stunned the visitors, while heroics from Mark Flekken between the sticks kept them at bay.
However, Phil Foden's equaliser on the stroke of half time shifted the momentum in Man City's favour, and the academy star netted his second eight minutes after the interval before completing a superb hat-trick on the 70-minute mark to help the Citizens - bidding to win a record fourth successive Premier League title - continue their charge back towards the summit.
Pep Guardiola's men, who have moved to within two points of table-toppers Liverpool and have a game in hand on the Reds, are enjoying another one of their customary winning runs at an important stage of the season, as they have come out on top in each of their last nine matches across all competitions by an aggregate score of 27-6.
Man City beat Everton 3-1 at Goodison Park in the early stages of this run and the Citizens will be confident of further success on Saturday as they have won 11 and drawn two of their last 13 top-flight meetings with the Toffees.
The reigning champions will welcome a run of three consecutive Premier League home games this month considering that they have excelled when playing in front of the Etihad faithful, winning 29, drawing five and losing just one of their last 35 such matches, while they have not lost any of their last 23 home league games against teams in the relegation zone, which bodes well ahead of their latest fixture with Everton.
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Since winning four Premier League games in a row without conceding a goal in the first half of December, Everton have failed to come out on top in any of their last six top-flight fixtures, which has subsequently seen them slip into the bottom three.
Back-to-back goalless draws with Aston Villa and Fulham were followed by last weekend's 2-2 at home to Spurs, in which goals from Jack Harrison and Jarrad Branthwaite – the latter netting a 94th-minute equaliser – cancelled out two strikes from former Toffees man Richarlison.
Amid all the "adversity" on and off the pitch, Sean Dyche heaped praise on his side's character to claim a point at the death and believes that their latest result could kick-start their season as they endeavour to clamber out of the relegation picture.
Everton's winless run has occurred at a time when relegation rivals Luton Town have accumulated eight points from their last five fixtures to move above the Toffees, who are now tasked with facing five teams currently sitting in the top eight across their next six league matches.
The Merseysiders head into Saturday's daunting contest having failed to win any of their last 12 visits to the Etihad, losing seven and drawing five, while they have not won a Premier League game home or away against Man City since their 4-0 triumph in January 2017 – Guardiola's first encounter against the Toffees and his heaviest league defeat in his managerial career.
Team News
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Man City head into this weekend with a clean bill of health, with Erling Haaland and Manuel Akanji – who were both in the matchday squad against Brentford – the most recent duo to recover from injury.
Having seen his Citizens side keep just one clean sheet in their last 12 league matches, Guardiola may ponder making one or two changes to his backline, with Akanji, John Stones and Rico Lewis all hoping to force their way back into the first XI.
Either Mateo Kovacic or Matheus Nunes could be recalled if Guardiola decides to partner a midfielder with lynchpin Rodri, while Jack Grealish, Jeremy Doku and Oscar Bobb have a task on their hands to displace any of Foden, Kevin De Bruyne, Julian Alvarez or Bernardo Silva, who all provided support in attack for Haaland against Brentford.
As for Everton, Arnaut Danjuma was forced to miss last weekend's clash with former club Spurs due to an ankle injury, and the winger remains in the treatment room with Andre Gomes (calf), Dele Alli (groin) and Abdoulaye Doucoure (hamstring), although Dyche has confirmed that the latter is "making good progress" in his recovery.
However, the Toffees could be boosted by the return of dynamic midfielder Amadou Onana (knee), while Ben Godfrey should be fit to feature despite suffering with cramp in the closing stages against Spurs.
Godfrey will be hoping to fend off competition from Seamus Coleman and Nathan Patterson for a start at right-back, while Dominic Calvert-Lewin may get the nod once again to lead the line ahead of Beto, with Harrison and Dwight McNeil providing support from the flanks.
Manchester City possible starting lineup:
Ederson; Walker, Dias, Ake, Gvardiol; Rodri; Bernardo, De Bruyne, Alvarez, Foden; Haaland
Everton possible starting lineup:
Pickford; Patterson, Tarkowski, Branthwaite, Mykolenko; Harrison, Garner, Gueye, Onana, McNeil; Calvert-Lewin
We say: Manchester City 3-1 Everton
In a match with consequences at both ends of the table, Guardiola and Dyche should have few problems motivating their respective teams in their quest to claim maximum points, but there is no hiding the fact that Man City head into Saturday's contest as firm favourites.
Although the Citizens have been far from watertight defensively, they have been scoring goals for fun and considering that Haaland is back in the mix, the hosts boast the firepower required to outscore their opponents.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Oliver Thomas
