Manchester City and Fulham will face each other in the FA Cup for the first time in 106 years when Scott Parker’s side travel to the Etihad Stadium on Sunday.
Defending champions Man City have lost just two of their last 12 games in all competitions and come into this game on the back of a seven-match unbeaten run.
Pep Guardiola’s side cruised past Port Vale in the FA Cup third round. Goals from Oleksandr Zinchenko, Sergio Aguero, Taylor Hardwood-Bellis and Phil Foden saw Man City thrash the League Two outfit 4-1.
Man City then claimed a comfortable 3-1 win over Manchester United in the EFL Cup before hammering Aston Villa 6-1. A 2-2 draw with Crystal Palace last weekend was followed by a hard-fight 1-0 win over Sheffield United in midweek.
Guardiola’s men have reclaimed second place in the Premier League table and now sit three points ahead of third-place Leicester. However, the gulf between City and Liverpool remains astronomical.
Fulham are also battling at the top end of their respective table as the London club find themselves third in the Championship after losing just one of their previous seven league games.
The Cottagers overcame Premier League opposition in the previous round – seeing off Aston Villa 2-1 thanks to goals from Anthony Knockaert and Harry Arter.
Despite their promising run, Fulham’s recent record against Man City is poor. Fulham have lost their last eight matches against the Cityzens in all competitions, while City kept six clean sheets in the process.
It’s also worth pointing out that Man City have scored over 1.5 goals in each of their previous eight victories over Fulham, and netted over 2.5 goals in half of those matches.
Additionally, City’s recent record in the FA Cup is outstanding. Pep Guardiola’s side have won their last seven FA Cup games, scoring 30 goals (at an average of over four goals per game). They have also conceded just four goals in that time.
Guardiola is likely to tinker with his team this weekend, so we should see Phil Foden return to the starting line-up. The teenager has been directly involved in nine goals in eight appearances against lower-league opposition in domestic cup competitions.
Fulham will be without star striker Aleksandar Mitrovic as the Serbian continues to recover from an ankle injury sustained earlier in the month.
Man City look set to continue their remarkable run against Fulham and the Premier League side are expected to qualify for the fifth round of the FA Cup with ease.
Forebet predicts that Man City will once again score over 2.5 goals on their way to victory while keeping a clean sheet.