Manchester City will resume their Premier League campaign following the Club World Cup triumph as they face Everton at Goodison Park on Wednesday.
The Citizens have dropped down to fifth in the standings, while Sean Dyche’s men are sitting four points above the relegation zone.
Match Preview
Everton’s four-game winning run in the Premier League came to an end on Saturday as Tottenham Hotspur beat them 2-1.
Spurs got themselves in a dominating position after Richarlison and Son Heung-min scored before the break. Andre Gomes pulled one back with eight minutes remaining, but Ange Postecoglou’s men held out for a comfortable victory.
Despite the defeat, Everton are still four points off the drop zone, which is an incredible feat given they suffered a 10-point deduction for breaching the financial rules last month.
On the other hand, Manchester City shrugged off their sluggish league form to cruise past Fluminense last week, thus winning their first-ever Club World Cup trophy.
Julian Alvarez netted a brace in a standout display as City sealed a 4-0 success in Jeddah, thus taking their fifth title in 2023.
Man City have fallen behind Arsenal, Liverpool and Aston Villa in the Premier League title race after a run of just a single win from their previous six top-flight matches.
Their most recent fixture saw them suffer a disappointing 2-2 draw with Crystal Palace.
A routine victory looked on the cards for the English champions after goals from Jack Grealish and Rico Lewis. But Jean-Philippe Mateta pulled one back before Michael Olise netted an injury-time equaliser to snatch a point for the Eagles.
Team News
Everton will be without Abdoulaye Doucoure on Wednesday as he is still battling a hamstring issue. Meanwhile, Idrissa Gueye picked up a knock against Spurs and it is uncertain whether he will be fit for the next home clash.
As for Manchester City, Rodri sustained a knee injury against Fluminense and so his availability is doubtful. Same is the case with Erling Haaland, Kevin de Bruyne and Jeremy Doku, with the trio’s availability also uncertain.
Everton vs Manchester City potential line-ups
Everton: Pickford; Patterson, Tarkowski, Branthwaite, Mykolenko; Gueye, Onana; Harrison, Garner, McNeil; Calvert-Lewin.
Manchester City: Ederson; Walker, Dias, Gvardiol, Ake; Stones, Kovacic, Bernardo; Foden, Alvarez, Grealish.
Everton vs Manchester City prediction
Manchester City will be highly motivated to win on Wednesday as they cannot afford to drop more points in their bid to defend the Premier League crown. Coming away with full points from Goodison Park will not be easy, as evidenced by the recent defeats of Newcastle United and Chelsea. But given the squad quality of City, we believe they will pull off the feat in Merseyside this week.
Everton 1-2 Manchester City
