Everton V Manchester City
Saturday 28th September 2019 – 17:30 Kick-Off
English Premier League
Pick: Both Teams to Score
Odds: 5/6
Bookmaker: SportingBet
 |
1 | X | 2 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 41/5 | 23/5 | 29/100 |
* (All betting odds displayed were correct as of 26th September 2019 at 10:20)
Preview: The final Premier League fixture on Saturday has the potential to be the best of the bunch, as a recently rampant Manchester City make their way to Merseyside to face an Everton side under immense pressure to deliver a big performance. Goodison Park is the venue for what should be an intriguing contest in front of the Sky Sports cameras.
English Premier League Betting – 22Bet
Everton Preview – Toffees need to deliver momentus win?
Assembling a talented and costly squad is one thing but extracting the best from them is another, something that has already dawned on Everton manager Marco Silva. The Portuguese has endured a tumultuous spell on Merseyside since arriving, with some very good spells and some less so – and it is the latter at the moment. Losing 2-0 at home to Sheffield United last time out was their third loss in the last four league games (W1 L3).
Losing at home to a newly-promoted side was a shock. It was also extremely harsh on The Toffees, who were the better side in most aspects bar one: putting the ball in the back of the net. That has been a recurring theme unfortunately, with a side boasting a wealth of attacking options averaging less than a goal per game so far.
Everton have now slipped into the lower half of the table as a consequence of their poor form, (14th – W2 D1 L3, GF5 GA9). According to Expected Goals, though, this team should be a lot higher, which is a reminder that not everything is broken, nor are they so hopeless they should be dismissed in this match-up. It is also easy to forget Everton were victorious in both previous home fixtures – against Wolves (3-2) and Watford (1-0) – prior to facing Sheffield United.
Furthermore, a comfortable night’s work on Tuesday in the EFL Cup should have restored some pride, ironically defeating the other club from Sheffield, Sheffield Wednesday (0-2). Both goals were scored by Dominic Calvert-Lewin, which will have done his confidence the world of good. The forward is 4/1 with Unibet to follow that brace up with at least one goal against the Premier League champions.
Man City Preview – Another rampant showing expected?
The lesson for the rest of the Premier League was unambiguous – you do not want to be facing this Manchester City side immediately after it has tasted league defeat. That was the case for Watford last weekend, who were victims in an 8-0 massacre which saw Man City surge into a 5-0 lead before there was even 20 minutes on the clock. It was the perfect riposte to losing 3-2 at Norwich City.
Ruthlesss City were back to their majestic best last time out, with Bernado Silva notching his first career hat-trick and Kevin De Bruyne again inspired. The opposition were in benevolent mood, though, providing no resistance whatsoever. That is highly unlikely to be the case at Goodison Park, with Guardiola’s troops back on the road in the league for the first occasion since that harrowing experience in Norfolk.
Prior to Norwich, Man City had won the previous two away matches in impressive fashion. Raheem Sterling and Sergio Aguero were on target in both of their victories at West Ham (0-5) and Bournemouth (1-3), with the latter having now scored in every league fixture in 2019-20 thus far (8 in total). The Argentine was handed the night off as his team-mates eased past Preston (0-3) in the EFL Cup on Tuesday.
Aguero, then, would appear primed to start here, fresher for his midweek absence and keen to make it eight consecutive games on the scoresheet, having also netted on the final day of last season. A bet on Aguero to score and Man City to win (Aguero/Man City) would have returned a winner on four occasions this season and could prove popular at 20/23 with Boylesports.
Everton V Manchester City Key Facts:
- Everton dropped to 14th in the Premier League after losing at home to Sheff Utd (W2 D1 L3).
- Man City remain in second following an 8-0 spanking of Watford at The Etihad (W4 D1 L1).
- Both league meetings in 2018-19 were won by Man City, who were 2-0 victors at Goodison Park in February.
Betting Summary
From somewhere, Everton must find a clinical edge. Another lacklustre performance in front of goal will almost certainly be punished in this fixture. A return of five goals from their opening six league games is simply not good enough, with last week’s shock loss at home to Sheffield United the latest example of their attacking profligacy being severely punished. That was also their second consecutive defeat in the league, having now lost three of the last four such matches (W1 L3).
Man City were under a little bit of pressure ahead of hosting Watford. The response was emphatic, as The Citizens racked up a ridiculous 8-0 scoreline. They would follow that up with a routine EFL Cup win over Preston (0-3). So the momentum is clearly back with them, although this will be their first away outing in the league since that shambolic defensive display against Norwich, when losing 3-2.
The consensus among Everton supporters last season was that a 2-0 loss in this fixture was wonderful, because at the time it dented Liverpool’s title prospects. I’m not so sure that is the case right now, with their own needs more pertinent. The home side are under pressure to produce a vastly improved performance and I have a feeling they may do so, against an albeit excellent Man City side who are, however, missing key defensive personnel once more and can be exposed defensively.
