Premier League: Manchester City vs Stoke City

Manchester City vs Stoke City Betting Tip and Predictions. In the opening match of Round 35 in Premier League, Manchester City host Stoke City at Etihad. Read below betting preview, useful info and predictions for the match between Manchester City vs Stoke City.

Manchester City stand at the 4th position and their main goal is to finish the season in the Top 4 and play in the UEFA Champions League next season. They will be fully motivated to reach the 3rd position and avoid to play in the qualifications for Champions League. Arsenal have only two points more than Man City, while on the other side their city rivals, Manchester United, are only two points behind, so home side are under pressure and have to win this game. In the previous round City took only one point away against Newcastle, so against Stoke they want three points upfront their supporters. Manuel Pellegrini‘s men have made fantastic success in the Champions League this season and in the Semi-finals they will face Real Madrid on Tuesday. The victory against Stoke City would give them a lot of confidence before that game, so I believe that they will start with attacks from the beginning of the match. Their top scorer Sergio Aguero, and one of the main candidate to become top scorer in Premier League, is in the great form with 6 goals in the last 4 matches and he will be the most dangerous player for Stoke defence.

Stoke City stand at the middle of the table and they don’t have to worry about relegation, while on the other side they have minimal chances to reach the place which leads in the Europa League, so they are playing without motivation. It shows their recent performance and only one win in the last 6 Premier League matches. Visitors have managed to beat today’s rivals in the first half of the season 2-0 and they hope that can make another good result, but home side are in the great form and they desperately need points, so it will be very hard for Stoke to stay unbeaten at Etihad. Big blow for visitors is that they have many problems with injured and suspended players. Stoke play very solid in the attack, especially when they are play away. They scored at least one goal on each of their last 4 away matches and they could very dangerous for home side.

Manchester City vs Stoke City injuries and suspensions

Home side miss Nasri, but the good news are that David Silva, Gael Clichy and Bacary Sagna are all fit and will be available. Visitors will be without suspended Erik Pieters, while their first goalkeeper Jack Butland, Jonathan Walters, Glen Johnson and Marc Wilson are all injured, while Xherdan Shaqiri is doubtful.

Manchester City vs Stoke City possible lineups

Manchester City: Hart; Zabaleta, Kompany, Mangala, Kolarov; Fernando, Delph; Toure, Navas, Silva; Kun Aguero.
Stoke City: Given; Cameron, Shawcross, Wollschied, Muniesa; Whelan, Imbula; Shaqiri, Afellay, Arnautovic; Bojan.

Manchester City vs Stoke City Prediction

Home team are big favorites to win this game. Visitors have many problems with absences, especially in defence, so I believe that we will see a lot of goals, at least three.

Manchester City vs Stoke City Betting Tip: over 2.5 goals @ 1.65 (Bet365)