Crystal Palace vs Man City: Sky Blues remain in the Premier League top 3?
by Geoffrey Ejiga | by Geoffrey Ejiga
Man City Mounts Title Charge With Palace Away Trip
Despite losing as many games as the 10th-place Sunderland, Manchester City are just five points below league leaders Arsenal with a game in hand. They can now cut that gap to just two points, which would place The Citizens as legitimate title contenders by the end of round 16.
However, doing so couldn't be any more challenging for Pep’s men as they travel to face the second-best defense away from home. Crystal Palace have conceded just 12 goals this season, two behind league leaders Arsenal, and they've even lost fewer games (3) than the visiting Citizens (4). Check out our expert's Crystal Palace vs Man City prediction before you bet.
Man City will also be facing a Crystal Palace side who are psychologically confident after The Eagles lifted the latest FA Cup on their heads. For Man City, nothing short of their A-game is required if they wish to take all three points against an in-form, seemingly impenetrable Palace team in Selhurst Park.
But for Guardiola, this isn't a challenge too great to overcome. With yet another Premier League title in sight for the Spaniard, we can expect City to control the game from kick-off and apply pressure on the Palace backline until cracks form, which his team is poised to exploit.
Attacking-wise, Man City are the best team in the league so far, scoring the most goals (35) and recording the second-most wins (10), which they can even match with a win against Palace. City also has the league's highest goalscorer, Haaland, and low-block specialists like Bernardo Silva and Ryan Cherki to open up a relentless defense.
Palace to Trouble the Sky Blues Once More?
After winning the first major title in their history against Man City in the previous FA Cup, Palace seems to be an entirely different club this season, even holding the longest unbeaten run at some point. If any team can threaten City’s title challenge and top-3 spot at the moment, The Eagles are definitely one of them, despite what the betting odds suggest.
Palace are on a three-game winning streak, having just beaten Shelbourne 3-0 away from home in the Conference League. They also beat Fulham (2-1) and Burnley (1-0) in their latest EPL games, both away from home.
In the Premier League, Palace are also unbeaten in five of their last six games, and in six of their seven at home this season. But Man City will be a different tempo for Palace, who lost their very last EPL home game to Manchester United (2-1). The Eagles' history against the Citizens has also been one-sided, with Man City last losing an EPL game to Palace in 2022.
However, at Selhurst Park, they tend to perform much better against City. They drew their last home game (2-2) and have drawn two of the last four. With the kind of form they're in at the moment, it's not hard to see Palace picking up points in this game, especially after beating City in a final in full-time in their latest clash.
