On Sunday, Manchester City has the opportunity to temporarily leapfrog to the top of the Premier League table when they host the bottom-dwelling Wolverhampton Wanderers. City’s narrow 3-2 victory over Fulham prior to the international break has kept them closely behind Liverpool, the league leaders, while Wolves will be anxious to eradicate their miserable run of form following that frenetic 5-3 defeat to Brentford.
Match Preview:
Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City seem to generate headlines continuously-on and off the pitch. Be it far-fetched speculation about Guardiola’s supposed interest in becoming the England manager-a post that ultimately went to Thomas Tuchel-mouth-watering profit that Txiki Begiristain, the club’s sporting director, stands to make by exiting, or the legally binding win over APT rules-Manchester City is unable to come out of the headlines.
That, being outside of the pitch, does not seem to deter them on it: City remain unbeaten in all competitions this term and they came from behind to beat Fulham, cancelling out Andreas Pereira’s early effort with Mateo Kovacic and Jeremy Doku. A late consolation for Fulham with a goal from Rodrigo Muniz allowed City to cling on for an important three points.
That jolted City back up from two games without a win, remaining just one point short of Premier League leaders Liverpool and a point ahead of Arsenal due to goal difference. A win or draw on Sunday would establish a new club record for 31 consecutive Premier League games without a defeat, a run since December 2023.
Wolverhampton Wanderers vs. Manchester City
Nationally, however, Wolverhampton Wanderers are in freefall. Gary O’Neil’s side have lost their last five matches in all competitions and are winless in ten Premier League matches, which left them in the basement. Their troubles are not from the attack; Wolves have scored in their last eight games in all competitions. Their defense, however, has shown alarming fragility, conceding fifteen goals in their last five losses.
City’s recent run of form at home has also caused concern with a real possibility of them losing their first four home games for the first time in their history. However, the hierarchy remains convinced that O’Neil can steer them through to safety: last season’s memorable upset of City at Molineux (2-1) remains fresh in memory. But City has taken seven of the last eight between the two sides, including a 5-1 demolition in May where Erling Haaland scored four goals.
Team News:
Key midfielder Kevin Di Brunna of Manchester City stays out through injury. Nathan Ake is a doubt, while Rodri is completing his recovery from an ACL injury, and Oscar Bobb won’t be available until December after he broke his leg. Erling Haaland, fresh off breaking Norway’s all-time scoring record, will look to add to his current total of eight goals in the last four league matches against the Wolves.
On the other hand, Wolves suffered a set-back during the international break when Hwang Hee-chan picked up an ankle injury and he will not be back for a couple of weeks. Joining him on the injured list are Yerson Mosquera, Sasa Kalajdzic, Enso Gonzalez, and Boubacar Traore. However, O’Neil could have the teenage defender Bastien Meupiyou available for selection.
Prediction Lineups:
Wolverhampton Wanderers (4-4-2): Johnstone; Semedo, S. Bueno, Toti, Ait-Nouri; Bellegarde, Lemina, Andre, Gomes, Cunha; Larsen.
Manchester City (4-2-3-1): Ederson; Lewis, Akanji, Dias, Gvardiol; Kovacic, Gundogan; Silva, Foden, Doku; Haaland.
Prediction
Manchester City has got to be overwhelming favorites for this match because of their form and depth. Likewise, expect the Wolves’ defensive ‘mistakes’ to be exposed once again, with Haaland and company ready to gain ground. Looks like City will score an easy win and go top of the Premier League ladder for this match.
Prediction: Wolverhampton Wanderers 1-4 Manchester City.
