English Premier
2012-04-30 - Manchester City vs Manchester United
A Sports Betting Pick by Auls
Football: English Premier League
Monday 30 April 2012 - Kick Off 8pm
This game is live on TV
Manchester City
It looked like the title race was over as far as Manchester City were concerned when they lost to Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium and fell 8 points behind local rivals Manchester United, but the latter have begun faltering down the stretch. That means a reinvigorated City can actually take the lead in the table with just two games to go as long as the pick up the three points tonight.
City are 2nd in the Premier League table, 3 points behind United but with a 6 goal lead in the goal difference department thanks to big wins against West Brom and Norwich City in the last couple of weeks. They have a very strong home record, going 16-1-0 there, scoring 51 goals and conceding just 10. In fact, City are the highest home scorers in the League and have also conceded the least amount of home goals.
The defeat at Arsenal seems to have freed City from whatever pressure they may have been feeling in the title race and they have responded with 3 straight League wins, scoring 12 goals and conceding just the 1. They have won 8 of their last 9 games at the Etihad Stadium in all competitions, the only exception being a 3-3 draw with Sunderland. However, that point they gained, having been 1-3 down with 6 minutes left, looks invaluable now. City have scored at least 2 goals in 12 of their last 13 here, including the last 9 in a row.
Mario Balotelli is back in the squad having completed his suspension and looks set to be on the bench despite Roberto Mancini saying he will not play again this season. Micah Richards is also back for selection having missed the win at Wolves with a knee injury.
City Starting XI Prediction: Hart, Richards, Clichy, Kompany, Lescott, Yaya Toure, Silva, Barry, Nasri, Aguero and Tevez
Manchester United
Sir Alex Ferguson raised a clenched fist to the Stretford End as Manchester United led Everton 4-2 at Old Trafford with less than ten minutes remaining last Sunday, but those gestures quickly turned into thunder as the home team let slip and dropped 2 points. That has upped the importance of this game even further as United look for all the experience they have gained over the years to see them through.
The team are still on top of the Premier League but now know they HAVE to get a result at the Etihad Stadium to keep their place there after dropping 5 points in their last three League games. United should have some confidence in their ability to get a result as they bring in the best away record in the Premier League which stands at 12-3-2 so far. They have scored 36 goals and conceded 13 in those games, making them the joint highest away scorers and also the team that has conceded the least amount of away goals.
It looked like United had timed their run to perfection in the League again this season as they had picked up 34 points from a possible 36 available and moved 8 points clear of City in the table with 6 games left to play. However, picking up just 4 points from their last 9 available has once again given City a chance to reclaim top spot. United lost their last away game in the League at Wigan Athletic, but they had gained 16 from their last 18 points available before that while playing at tough grounds like Arsenal, Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur.
There are no new injury concerns for United to deal with outside of long-term absentees Anderson, Darren Fletcher and Nemanja Vidic.
United Starting XI Prediction: De Gea, Smalling, Evans, Ferdinand, Evra, Valencia, Carrick, Scholes, Giggs, Rooney and Welbeck
Head to Head
This will be the fourth meeting of the season in all competitions between the local rivals, and all three previous games have been high-scoring events.
United have won 2, City have won the other, while all games have seen at least 5 goals scored.
Manchester City have won just 1 of their last 5 home games against Manchester United in all competitions, while United have won 3 of those games.
The teams have actually met TEN times over the last 3 seasons- United have won 6, City have won 3 and the other finished in stalemate.
Prediction
This is going to be some game for the neutral to enjoy tonight, but fans of both clubs are going to be nervous wrecks in 90 minutes of tension that is sure to fill the ground.
City have once again picked up form, but they are under a different kind of pressure tonight as they have a real chance to put themselves in the driving seat for the title with a win, something they have not really experienced over their last three games.
United are also under pressure as they have dropped some really silly points over their last three games to breathe new life into the title race- all the fans that were expecting this to be a chance to clinch the title have been given a rude awakening.
I am expecting goals in this game, but I am not sure if we are going to get lots of them- the way I look at it, no matter which side scores first, I think the game will pan out in a similar way.
If City score first, it will get to the point where Roberto Mancini's instincts are likely to kick in and they will look to defend a lead and counter United who will be looking for the equaliser.
If United score first, I think it will be natural for the side to sit back a little, knowing they have a two goal cushion with a draw not being a bad result for them, and they will look to counter City who will be pushing for the equaliser.
I have a feeling that it will be United that does get the first goal today, especially considering they have scored first in 13 of their 17 away games in the League today, while City have conceded first in their last 3 home games before the win over West Brom.
For some time, I have had a sneaky feeling that this will end up in a 1-1 draw, so I am going with my gut feeling and picking this game to end in a 'score draw' at a nice looking 6.50 at Bet Victor.
I would be extremely happy if this pick fails because United have won or the game has ended 0-0, but I am going with my gut on this one.
The Statistics :
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The Pick :
Manchester City 1-1 Manchester United
