Manchester City need only a few more wins to ensure the Premier League title will end up in their hands. What this means is that they won’t be lacking motivation in Monday’s duel with Stoke City. The same goes for Stoke players, who are hoping that playing at the Bet365 Stadium will help them get something from this game.
They’re desperate for points, so it’s fair to expect their players give their utmost. But, will it be enough to grab at least a point in the game against the strongest side in England? Read Stoke vs. Manchester City match preview and betting tip to find out!
Stoke vs. Manchester City: Match Preview
Stoke City
With only 27 points after 29 rounds, Stoke is one of the main candidates for relegation. This team will need to work really hard to get away from the bottom. Luckily for them, there are a few other Premier League teams with the basically same problems. In fact, Southampton, a team that’s above the relegation zone has just one point more than Stoke.
Obviously, anything can happen till the end of the season. Who knows, Stoke may even end up in the upper half of the table. Of course, in order to achieve that, they need to play much better than before. The good news for their fans is that their form seems to be getting better. Stoke lost only one game in almost two months, not to mention that they’ve put on some really decent performances against Leicester and Watford.
What’s making their fans worry is the fact that their schedule is pretty tough. Starting with the match against Manchester City, this team has a pretty difficult journey ahead. They’ll have to face several top sides till the end of the season, including Tottenham, Liverpool, and Arsenal.
Manchester City
Beating Stoke seems like an ideal opportunity for Pep’s side to get one step closer to the Premier League title. This team got qualified for the quarter finals of the Champions League, which will take place in April. This means that for the remainder of March, Manchester City can focus on nothing else but the Premier League.
There’s really no point in discussing the quality of Manchester City players. They’re one of the best teams in the world and definitely the best squad in the Premier League, so beating Stoke City should not be a big problem for them. They’re also in a pretty good run, although they did lose to Basel at home in the Champions League. Of course, that game didn’t matter too much to them as they had a favorable result in the first part of the doubleheader.
Team News
Stoke City:
- Lee Grant (injury)
- Stephen Ireland (doubtful)
Manchester City:
- Benjamin Mendy (injury)
- Fernandinho (doubtful)
- Raheem Sterling (doubtful)
Probable Lineups
Stoke City: Butland – Zouma, Martins-Indi, Bauer, Stafylidis – Cameron, Ndiaye, Allen – Choupo-Moting, Shaquiri, Diouf
Manchester City: Ederson – Stones, Laporte, Walker, Zinchenko – Gundogan, David Silva, De Bruyne – Sane, Bernardo Silva, Aguero
Stoke City vs. Manchester City Match Prediction
I’m 100% confident Manchester City will win this. Unfortunately, the bookies know it as well, which is why the odds on away win are only about 1.20 (1/5). If you want to make more money betting on this match, perhaps a better solution is to focus on goals.
Manchester City is a team that’s scored 83 goals in 29 Premier League games, so it’s fair to expect them to win big. Moreover, Stoke City have the second-worst defense in the league, with 54 conceded goals. Only West Ham have allowed more, but this team has played one match more.
Stoke City vs. Manchester City Betting Tips
Manchester City @1.22 (bet365)
Over 2.5 Goals @1.5 (bet365)
