Match infoVenue: Etihad stadium-ManchesterTime: 12:45 PM Manchester City have won just two of their last 12 Premier League meetings with Everton, losing nine Everton have the same record (W3, D3) after six games as they did in 1986-87, their last title winning season Manchester City have scored eight goals from crosses in the Premier League this season; twice as many as the next best side. The Toffees would be aiming to extend their strong recent Premier League record against City and Manuel Pellegrini’s side looking to stop a two match skid. For Everton, they enter the match on the heels of an impressive 3-2 victory over Newcastle. The Monday night match saw the Blues jump out to a 3-0 lead at halftime behind a Romelu Lukaku brace and Ross Barkley‘s second goal of the season. Roberto Martinez‘ men took their foot off the gas in the second half of play and were punished for their arrogance, as Newcastle made it a match by finding the net twice in the second half. It was the third league victory in a row for Everton, having also defeated West Ham United and Chelsea after beginning the season with three straight draws (Norwich City, West Bromwich Albion, Cardiff City). For Manchester City, Saturday’s match represents the opportunity to change the tides after dropping all three points at Aston Villa last weekend and losing 3-1 to Bayern Munich in Tuesday night’s Champions League action. Lapses in defense continue to plague the Citizens, with the center-back combination of Vincent Kompany and Matija Nastasic no longer looking as impressive as it did last year. The Villa and Munich loses came on the heels of an impressive Manchester Derby victory, where Pellegrini’s men had the look of champions. They pounded their rivals with four goals, bringing their league unbeaten streak to three games after drawing 0-0 with Stoke City and beating Hull City 2-0 . That streak followed a shock 3-2 defeat at Cardiff City after an impressive 4-0 victory over Newcastle in the season opener. On the other hand the Toffees are creative on the bounce, and by Bringing in Romelu Lukaku on loan to lead their line was a stroke of genius, coupled with his connection with fellow countryman and winger Kevin Miralegrini. based on City matches (against Newcastle and Manchester United) they’ve looked like world beaters and others (Cardiff City, Stoke City and Aston Villa) they’ve struggled. Having dropped points in all three road matches, it’s easy to say that City struggle on the road but one can’t discount the impact of a new manager trying to excel both domestically and in Europe. For City, it’s about shoring up a leaky defense. Kompany needs to continue asserting himself on the pitch and a second center-back, whether Nastasic or Joleon Lescott , needs to step up and prove himself. Improvements also have to be made between the sticks where the blunders of Joe Hartcontinue to plague the side, leading some to believe Costel Pantilimon deserves a shot. City will welcome the league return of David Silva after being sidelined with injury while Martin Demichelis (knee) and former Everton man Jack Rodwell (muscle problem) remain out. The loan deal between Everton and City will prevent Barry from featuring and the Toffees will hope Darron Gibson (knee) can replace him. Everton will await to see whether Kevin Mirallas (ankle) can go while Pienaar (hamstring) is likely out. The match is guaranteed to be an entertaining affair. posted on jtnng.blogspot/
Posted on: Sat, 05 Oct 2013 09:15:10 +0000
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