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Manchester City logo
Premier League | Gameweek 31
Apr 10, 2021 at 12.30pm UK
Etihad Stadium
Leeds logo

Man City
1 - 2
Leeds

Torres (76')
Ake (35'), Silva (83'), Fernandinho (90+3')
FT(HT: 0-1)
Dallas (42', 90+1')
Alioski (66')
Cooper (45+1')

Preview: Manchester City vs. Leeds United - prediction, team news, lineups

Sports Mole previews Saturday's Premier League clash between Manchester City and Leeds United, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.

Manchester City will be looking to continue their charge towards the Premier League title when they welcome Leeds United to the Etihad Stadium on Saturday afternoon.

The Citizens are currently top of the table, 14 points ahead of second-placed Manchester United, while Leeds occupy 11th position, level on points with 10th-placed Arsenal on the same number of games.


Match preview

Manchester City's Phil Foden celebrates scoring their second goal against Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League on April 6, 2021© Reuters

Only an incredible turn of events will prevent Man City from winning this season's Premier League title, with 14 points currently separating the leaders from second-placed Man United.

The Citizens have won their last three in England's top flight since suffering a 2-0 loss to Man United on March 7, including a 2-0 victory over Leicester City at the King Power Stadium last weekend, with Benjamin Mendy and Gabriel Jesus on the scoresheet against the Foxes.

Pep Guardiola's side are chasing the quadruple this season, and they recorded a 2-1 win over Borussia Dortmund in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final on Tuesday evening, leaving the tie delicately poised ahead of the return fixture on April 14.

Man City will face Tottenham Hotspur in the final of the EFL Cup at the end of the month, meanwhile, and will take on Chelsea in the semi-finals of the FA Cup on April 14, meaning that Guardiola will need to rotate his squad in the coming weeks due to the volume of matches.

The Citizens have comfortably the best home record in the Premier League this season, picking up 38 points from their 16 matches, but Leeds have recorded seven away league victories this term, which is the same as Tottenham Hotspur, West Ham United, Liverpool and Chelsea.

Leeds United manager Marcelo Bielsa pictured on February 27, 2021© Reuters

Leeds, meanwhile, will enter the contest off the back of successive Premier League victories over Fulham and Sheffield United, which has moved them into 11th position in the table.

The Whites have won 13, drawn three and lost 14 of their 30 league matches this term to collect 42 points, level with 10th-placed Arsenal and just two points behind ninth-placed Aston Villa.

Marcelo Bielsa's side lost four of their five league games between February 14 and March 8, but it has been a strong few weeks for the promoted club, who have drawn with Chelsea, in addition to beating Fulham and Sheffield United, in their last three fixtures.

As mentioned, the Whites have won seven times on their travels in the Premier League this season, which is an impressive record considering their position in the table, while they held Man City to a 1-1 draw when the two teams locked horns at Elland Road back in October.

Manchester City Premier League form:
  • W
  • W
  • L
  • W
  • W
  • W

Manchester City form (all competitions):
  • W
  • W
  • W
  • W
  • W
  • W

Leeds United Premier League form:
  • W
  • L
  • L
  • D
  • W
  • W



Team News

Leeds United's Raphinha and Jack Harrison celebrate their second goal against Sheffield United in the Premier League on April 3, 2021© Reuters

Man City have no confirmed absentees heading into this weekend's contest, with the Citizens not suffering any fresh problems against Dortmund in the Champions League.

Guardiola will ring the changes for this weekend's clash, with Mendy, Aymeric Laporte, Raheem Sterling, Fernandinho and Sergio Aguero all potentially returning to the side.

Gabriel Jesus could also feature in a wide area, with Joao Cancelo, Rodri, Riyad Mahrez, Kevin De Bruyne and Phil Foden among those likely to be given a rest against the Whites.

As for Leeds, Adam Forshaw is still unavailable for selection, while Jack Harrison is not eligible against his parent club, but the visitors are otherwise in good shape.

Bielsa is expected to stick with the bulk of the side that started against Sheffield United, with Patrick Bamford and Raphinha certain to feature in the final third of the field.

There might be just the one change from the side that started last time out, with Helder Costa replacing Harrison, meaning that Rodrigo Moreno and Mateusz Klich might start on the bench once again.

Manchester City possible starting lineup:
Ederson; Walker, Dias, Laporte, Mendy; B Silva, Fernandinho, Gundogan; Sterling, Aguero, Jesus

Leeds United possible starting lineup:
Meslier; Ayling, Llorente, Cooper, Alioski; Costa, Phillips, Roberts, Dallas, Raphinha; Bamford


SM words green background

We say: Manchester City 3-1 Leeds United

Guardiola will ring the changes on Saturday, but the home side will still be full of quality. Leeds are capable of finding the back of the net against the Citizens, but we are finding it very difficult to predict anything other than a comfortable victory for the runaway leaders.



Top tip

Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting over 2.5 goals in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Over 2.5:data


Video prediction

Watch the Sports Mole Football Shorts prediction for this game below:



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Written by
Matt Law

Data Analysis

Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Manchester City win with a probability of 72.68%. A draw had a probability of 15.7% and a win for Leeds United had a probability of 11.6%.

The most likely scoreline for a Manchester City win was 2-0 with a probability of 9.53%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-1 (9.2%) and 3-0 (8.31%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (7.03%), while for a Leeds United win it was 1-2 (3.39%). The actual scoreline of 1-2 was predicted with a 3.4% likelihood.


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Game History

How you voted: Man City vs Leeds

Manchester City
74.6%
Draw
9.7%
Leeds United
15.7%
248
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Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool16123137162139
2Chelsea17105237191835
3Arsenal1796234161833
4Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest179442319431
5Bournemouth178452721628
6Aston Villa178452626028
7Manchester CityMan City178362925427
8Newcastle UnitedNewcastle177552721626
9Fulham176742422225
10Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton176742726125
11Tottenham HotspurSpurs1772839251423
12Brentford177283232023
13Manchester UnitedMan Utd176472122-122
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham175572230-820
15Everton163761421-716
16Crystal Palace173771826-816
17Leicester CityLeicester173592137-1614
18Wolverhampton WanderersWolves1733112740-1312
19Ipswich TownIpswich172691632-1612
20Southampton1713131136-256


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