Manchester City head into the weekend looking up the table at somebody for the first time in a long while. Arsenal, a side led by a former Man City assistant coach and starring two players that City sold to them this suumer, are now top of the table. Having dropped points versus Newcastle last week, City will be very fired up not to do that again here against Crystal Palace. Before we preview this match, a bit of other Man City news to cover.
The Sky Blues learned their UCL group stage fate today!
The UEFA Champions League group stage draw was today, Stream the Matches on Paramount+. Try it FREE!
They’ll be in Group G, along with Sevilla, Borussia Dortmund and Copenhagen. Sounds like a solid group. Now, on to the weekend fixture.
Manchester City vs Crystal Palace FYIs
Kick: Sat Aug 27, 3pm, City of Manchester Stadium
Team News for Both Sides: go here
After Extra Time Podcast: Spotify Apple
PL Position: Manchester City 2nd, 7pts Crystal Palace 9th, 4pts
Form Guide: Manchester City DWW Crystal Palace WDL
Google Result Probability: Manchester City 82% Crystal Palace 6% Draw 12%
Manchester City injuries
Aymeric Laporte (knee) has yet to feature this season, and it will be a few weeks yet until he does so. Benjamin Mendy remains suspended, as he stands trial for multiple sex crimes. 100 million GBP man Jack Grealish (knee) and Nathan Ake (groin injury suffered last week) are doubts.
That means Ruben Dias and John Stones are the last two remaining central defenders that are fully fit and available.
Flipping over to Palace, they will be without the services of four players: James McArthur (groin), James Tomkins (undisclosed), Jack Butland (hand), Nathan Ferguson (foot)
Paul M. Banks is the owner/manager of The Bank (TheSportsBank.Net) and author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” as well as “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He has regularly appeared in WGN, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune, and he co-hosts the After Extra Time podcast, part of Edge of the Crowd Network. Follow him and the website on Twitter and Instagram.