We are fast approaching the end of the season in the English Premier League and teams are playing their games in hand this week.
One of the matches to be played involves defending champions Manchester City and they meet West Ham United at the Etihad Stadium.
Always working hard! 💪 pic.twitter.com/LUBGY12gNs— Manchester City (@ManCity) May 1, 2023
Always working hard! 💪 pic.twitter.com/LUBGY12gNs
The hosts are currently top of the table on 76 points while the visitors are in 15th place on 34 points.
Manchester City come into the match on the back of a hard fought 2-1 victory at Fulham in the Premier League on the weekend.
Manchester City opened the scoring from the penalty spot in only the 3rd minute but Fulham equalised 12 minutes later. Manchester City moved in-front 9 minutes before half time and kept the hosts out in the second period to take maximum points.
The win at Fulham means Manchester City are undefeated in their last 18 games in all competitions. They have won each of their last 8 fixtures in the Premier League and are undefeated in their 11 most recent Premier League matches.
Home form in the Premier League shows Manchester City are undefeated in their last 8 matches and have won each of their last 7 league fixtures.
There have been wins over Tottenham Hotspur, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Aston Villa, Newcastle United, Liverpool, Leicester City, and Arsenal. Both teams have scored in 4 of Manchester City’s 5 most recent home Premier League games.
West Ham travel to the Etihad Stadium having lost 4-3 at Crystal Palace in the Premier League on the weekend.
The Hammers took the lead in the 9th minute but found themselves 3-1 down after half an hour. West Ham pulled one goal back 10 minutes before half time but conceded a fourth goal in the 66th minute which made a comeback extremely difficult.
The defeat at Crystal Palace means West Ham have lost their 2 most recent fixtures, with other defeat coming at home against Liverpool in the Premier League. Again, West Ham were the team who opened the scoring but they could not hold on to their lead.
Form in the Premier League shows West Ham have won 2 of their 6 most recent matches. They have recorded only 2 victories from their last 14 away Premier League games but have scored in each of their last 3 away trips.
Team news and Manchester City are without defender Nathan Aké due to a hamstring problem. There are also doubts over the fitness of Kevin De Bruyne.
West Ham travel without injured striker Gianluca Scamacca but he is the only player unavailable for the visitors.
Manchester City are in tremendous form and should have little trouble beating West Ham to move one step closer to the title.
The Hammers have found away wins difficult to achieve and keeping the final score respectable could be their main objective in this game.
We expect to see Manchester City win comfortably and keep a clean sheet in the process.