Having ended 2024 as they mean to begin 2025, Manchester City endeavour to continue their Premier League revival in Saturday afternoon's home encounter with West Ham United at the Etihad.
The reigning champions ended a topsy-turvy calendar year by seeing off Leicester City 2-0, several hours before their visitors were obliterated 5-0 at home by rampant leaders Liverpool.
Match preview
© Imago
Christmas cheer may have been in short supply on the blue half of Manchester, but there was reason for Pep Guardiola to celebrate a momentous occasion at the King Power Stadium, where his 500th game in charge of Man City ended in a long-overdue victory.
Savinho's maiden Premier League goal and a second-half header from Erling Haaland were enough to see off Ruud van Nistelrooy's Foxes, who were the victims of Man City's first win in five matches across all competitions and their first away success in over two months.
The champions-in-crisis had endured a chastening eight-game winless run on the road prior to their King Power triumph - losing seven of those encounters - but just a second victory in 14 matches in all tournaments has lifted Guardiola's men back into the top six of the Premier League table.
However, the Catalan coach has already extinguished hope of an epic title comeback while Man City have work to do to even retain their Champions League status for 2025-26, but a New Year seldom brings anything other than three points for Saturday's hosts.
Indeed, the Citizens have prevailed in each of their last 12 opening league games of a calendar year since being stunned by Southampton in 2012, and from Guardiola's eight Premier League home matches against West Ham, his side have triumphed in all eight of them.
© Imago
Failing to march to victory in any of their last 18 Premier League matches against Man City, West Ham could start 2025 by writing an unwanted chapter of club history; they have never suffered a 19-game streak without a league win against a particular opponent.
The Irons also went 18 games without victory against Liverpool back in the late 20th century, and the Merseyside giants coincidentally made extremely light work of Julen Lopetegui's men on December 29, as five different scorers got in on the act.
Luis Diaz, Diogo Jota, Cody Gakpo, Mohamed Salah and Trent Alexander-Arnold all contributed to the hammering of the Hammers, whose four-game unbeaten run came to an end in humiliating fashion, although they still have a healthy eight-point buffer to the relegation zone.
However, the visitors' five-goal thumping at the hands of the league leaders means that they conceded the most Premier League goals of any team in 2024 (79), and speaking of breachable backlines, West Ham have not kept a clean sheet in any of their last 24 Premier League games versus Man City.
The only time West Ham have gone 25 league games without a shut-out against a particular opponent was against Sunderland in a 45-year spell from 1923 to 1968, before annihilating the Black Cats 8-0 to end the sequence; for all of Man City's issues this season, a repeat of that eight-goal extravaganza at the Etihad is surely just a far-fetched fantasy.
Team News
© Imago
Man City boss Guardiola is guaranteed to be missing Rodri (ACL), Oscar Bobb (leg) and Ruben Dias (muscle) for the visit of the Irons, and he affirmed in his pre-game press conference that he expects a similar squad from the Citizens' last affair.
None of Matheus Nunes (unspecified), John Stones (foot) or Ederson (unspecified) would be fit to play in that scenario either, but the Citizens had Kyle Walker back from illness at the King Power Stadium, where he replaced Nathan Ake for the final 20 minutes.
With Salford City to come in the FA Cup on January 11, Guardiola should stick with his strongest possible side before making a plethora of changes in that third-round match, meaning no respite for the revived Haaland up front just yet.
As for West Ham, serious injury was added to insult in their recent loss to Liverpool, where Jarrod Bowen was substituted with what is now confirmed to be a foot fracture, ruling him out of action for the foreseeable future.
In brighter and highly reassuring news, Michail Antonio has been discharged from hospital a few weeks on from his horrific car accident, but it will be some time before he is given the green light to play again; Niclas Fullkrug should therefore spearhead the visitors' attack.
Lopetegui can also call upon Tomas Soucek and Guido Rodriguez once again following their respective suspensions, but Lukasz Fabianski remains out with the concussion he sustained in the win over Southampton.
Manchester City possible starting lineup:
Ortega; Lewis, Akanji, Ake, Gvardiol; Kovacic; Foden, Silva, De Bruyne, Savinho; Haaland
West Ham United possible starting lineup:
Areola; Wan-Bissaka, Mavropanos, Kilman, Emerson; Soucek, Rodriguez; Kudus, Paqueta, Summerville; Fullkrug
We say: Manchester City 3-0 West Ham United
Bowen's absence deprives West Ham of their principle attacking threat away from home, as the ex-Hull City man has registered 16 combined goals and assists in Premier League away games since the start of last season; none of his teammates has contributed more than eight.
Given the sorry nature of their defensive display against Liverpool too, Lopetegui's men should be put to the sword by a revitalised Man City, set to win back-to-back games for the first time since October.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Ben Knapton
