Fresh from winning a third consecutive Carabao Cup trophy, Manchester City will be looking to book their place in the FA Cup quarter-finals when they face Sheffield United at Hillsborough on Wednesday.
Considering that Pep Guardiola’s side have won their last five FA Cup games against teams from a lower division, scoring 22 goals in the process, Sheff Weds are likely to struggle.
The Owls kicked off their campaign with a 1-0 victory over Brighton – ending a 15-game run of FA Cup eliminations at the hands of Premier League opponents.
Sheff Weds then beat fellow Championship club QPR 2-1 in the fourth round to book their place in the last 16. However, things haven’t been going so well in the league.
Gary Monk’s side have only managed to win one of their previous nine Championship games. After spending much of the season in and around the playoff places, the Owls’ poor recent run has seen them drop to 12th in the second tier.
Meanwhile, Manchester City are unbeaten in their last four outings, including a Champions League victory over Real Madrid and an EFL Cup final win against Aston Villa.
The Cityzens have also beaten West Ham and Leicester recently, cementing 2nd place in the Premier League standings.
Man City completely dominated Villa at Wembley – enjoying 70% of the possession and notching up 22 shots. But goals from Sergio Aguero and Rodri saw City eventually edge a spirited Villa side 2-1.
🏆 2️⃣0️⃣2️⃣0️⃣ 🏆🔵 #ManCity #CarabaoCup pic.twitter.com/IqQ37wEBur— Manchester City (@ManCity) March 1, 2020
🏆 2️⃣0️⃣2️⃣0️⃣ 🏆🔵 #ManCity #CarabaoCup pic.twitter.com/IqQ37wEBur
Guardiola will be hoping that the trip to Hillsborough on Wednesday night is a bit more straightforward for his players.
Man City have made light work of their FA Cup opponents so far this season. A 4-1 thrashing of Port Vale was followed by a 4-0 victory over Fulham in the previous round.
Sheffield Wednesday are winless in their last eleven games against Manchester City in all competitions – drawing four and losing seven.
It’s also worth pointing out that Man City have progressed from all four of their previous FA Cup ties against Sheff Weds.
Looking at the team news, Owls trio Moses Odubajo, Adam Reach and Massimo Luongo are all close to returning from injury. Striker Steven Fletcher could be in line to start on Wednesday after featuring in the defeat to Derby last time out.
Man City will once again be without key defender Aymeric Laporte for at least a month, but Guardiola has no fresh injury worries this week.
All the signs are pointing towards a Manchester City win on Wednesday. The Owls are out of form, while City’s recent record in domestic cup competitions is outstanding.
Forebet predicts that Man City will score over 2.5 goals on their way to victory at Hillsborough. The home side aren’t likely to get on the scoresheet.