Man City Continue Pressure on Arsenal with Visit to Selhurst Park

Manchester City will endeavour to keep the pressure on Premier League title rivals, Arsenal when they travel to Selhurst Park to face Crystal Palace this evening

While Manchester City have won four of their last five top-flight matches, Crystal Palace are still searching for their first victory in 2023.

New Year’s Eve of 2022 was the last time that Crystal Palace celebrated victory in any competition – beating Bournemouth 2-0 on the road and Patrick Vieira’s men have since endured a 10-game winless run, including four defeats and five draws in their last nine Premier League matches.

Following three successive draws against Brighton & Hove Albion, Brentford and Liverpool, the Eagles suffered a narrow 1-0 defeat at Aston Villa last weekend.

Cheick Doucoure’s two yellow cards within the space of five second-half minutes did not help their cause, and Palace ended the contest without registering a single shot on target for the second consecutive match.

Vieira’s goal-shy side have now suffered 10 Premier League defeats this season and although they currently sit 12th in the table, the threat of a relegation dogfight is looming as they are only five points above the bottom three, albeit with a game in hand on 18th-placed Everton.

Hopes of claiming three valuable points today may be slim for Palace, but they have frustrated opponents at Selhurst Park over the last two months, drawing each of their last four home league games, all of which against teams currently placed inside the top eight.

The Eagles played out a goalless draw in their last home meeting with Man City, but that stalemate extended their winless home run against the Citizens to seven matches since a 2-1 victory back in April 2015.

After missing a plethora of chances in frustrating 1-1 draws with Nottingham Forest and RB Leipzig, Man City have since rediscovered their goalscoring groove, netting nine times in their last three matches.

Back-to-back away victories over Bournemouth (4-1) and Bristol City (3-0) were followed by a routine 2-0 home win over Newcastle United last weekend, to extend their unbeaten run in all competitions to seven games.

Pep Guardiola’s men were temporarily sitting just two points behind Premier League leaders Arsenal following their lunchtime win over the Magpies, before the Gunners came from two goals down to beat Bournemouth 3-2 a few hours later, to ensure the gap at the summit remains five points heading into the final 12 games of the season.

Man City head into today’s contest with a respectable away record of seven wins, three draws and three defeats from 13 Premier League games, with only Arsenal claiming more points on the road so far this season. However, the Citizens have already dropped more points away from home this season (15) compared with the entirety of the 2021-22 campaign (11).

Guardiola’s side have failed to win three of their last six meetings with Crystal Palace, but they came out on top earlier this season at the Etihad Stadium, with Erling Braut Haaland netting his first Premier League hat-trick in a 4-2 comeback triumph in August, and City will be confident of completing the double over an out-of-form Eagles outfit today.

Meanwhile, having both been involved in two of the season’s most electrifying Premier League matches last week, Bournemouth and Liverpool renew hostilities at the Vitality Stadium today.

The Cherries let a two-goal lead slip in a heartbreaking 3-2 loss to leaders Arsenal, while Jurgen Klopp’s merciless men humiliated Manchester United 7-0 at Anfield.

Setting the tone for the match after just 9.11 seconds through Philip Billing, and the rest of the five-goal thriller would appropriately live up to the billing.

The travelling Cherries faithful were in dreamland when Marcos Senesi doubled their side’s lead in the second half, but their two-goal advantage was quickly wiped out by Thomas Partey and Ben White before a last-gasp Reiss Nelson strike sparked arguably the wildest celebrations that the Emirates has ever seen.

Heads were on hands for the disconsolate Bournemouth players, but Gary O’Neil had every right to feel proud about his side’s efforts against the league leaders, having also bravely attacked Manchester City the weekend before during a 4-1 defeat.

However, bravery alone does not put points on the board for Bournemouth, who are rooted to the foot of the Premier League table – behind Southampton on goal difference – but they only have a one-point gap to make up to Leeds United in 17th place and are by no means down and out.

Ending a four-game Premier League winless run at the Vitality Stadium would be the first step towards clambering away from danger for the Cherries, who have now suffered three defeats when leading by two goals this season – squandering 17 points from winning positions in total.

Only Leicester City (19) have let more points slip away from them while in the ascendancy than Bournemouth.

From Mohamed Salah becoming their all-time Premier League goalscorer, Roberto Firmino scoring an emotional seventh and Cody Gakpo showing his former admirers exactly what they are missing, Sunday’s demolition of Manchester United was very nearly the perfect day for Jurgen Klopp.

Braces for Salah, Gakpo and Darwin Nunez came before Firmino made it seventh heaven for the Reds, who are now threatening Tottenham Hotspur’s place in the Champions League spots as they lie fifth, three points behind the Lilywhites with a game in hand.

A run of four wins and a draw from their last five Premier League games – with five clean sheets is just what the doctor ordered amid an otherwise underwhelming campaign.

Klopp’s men have only won one of their last five away games in the top division, but no Bournemouth fans will need reminding of the 9-0 drubbing inflicted upon them at Anfield back in August.