Manchester City vs Burnley Prediction & Betting Tips - Premier League

Prediction published on 11/03/2020, 07:34  by Steve Ashfield | Modified on 13/03/2020 at 09:17 in Premier League Prediction

Manchester City prepares for their crucial Champions League clash with Real Madrid by taking on Burnley at the Etihad in the Premier League this Saturday. City, second in the table, were supposed to play their game in hand on Wednesday against Arsenal but coronavirus fears have put that fixture on ice. Burnley, tenth in the table, come off the back of a 1-1 draw with Tottenham, their second successive stalemate in the league. Six points off fifth place, there is still time for Burnley to make up the ground necessary to qualify for Champions League football next season. However, this fixture at the Etihad is traditionally one that sees them receive a hiding. They have lost on their last three visits to City's ground by an aggregate score of 14-1. That's not the kind of statistic that bodes well for their upcoming trip. A defeat here may be the points-loss that puts paid to their Champions League dreams.

Then again, City don't look like the City of old, the City of Burnley hammerings past. Their last match was a limp 2-0 defeat to Manchester United at Old Trafford, a venue that Burnley won at by the same score at the start of the year. While Burnley are unbeaten in their last seven Premier League games, City have lost two of their previous four. The return of Kevin De Bruyne to the side should revive the assured play that has been missing from their game in recent weeks. Burnley, who dominated Spurs in that aforementioned game, had 21 shots at goal at the weekend. If they manage to take the same amount against Ederson, a few might end up in the back of the net. Both of United's goals against City came as a result of an Ederson error. He's been shaky but we expect De Bruyne and co. to protect him by denying Burnley the ball. Back City to win with a clean sheet.