Manchester City are beginning to purr once more and the signs are ominous for Burnley as they travel to the Etihad on Wednesday night.
The Cityzens finally broke their duck at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Friday night as Nathan Ake's late goal saw them progress into the fifth round of the FA Cup. They're yet to lose since being crowned world champions just before Christmas, with Liverpool's current five-point buffer at the Premier League summit looking rather slim.
City also have a game in hand on the league leaders.
Pep Guardiola's side thrashed Burnley 3-0 on the opening night of the 2023/24 season; a result which set the tone for the Clarets' rather meek campaign thus far. Vincent Kompany's side were denied three points by a late Luton Town equaliser last time out and currently sit five points adrift of safety.
Here's 90min's preview of Wednesday night's Premier League clash.
Man City vs Burnley H2H Record (Last Five Games)
Current Form (all competitions)
Country | TV channel/live stream |
|---|---|
United Kingdom | TNT Sports 3, discovery+ App, discovery+ |
United States | Peacock |
Canada | fuboTV |
City's injury list is dwindling and Guardiola was hopeful ahead of Friday's win that Erling Haaland, who returned to training last week, would be fit enough to feature on Wednesday.
However, the prolific Norwegian likely won't start so Julian Alvarez should retain his place up top.
Manuel Akanji is the only other doubt for the hosts with John Stones returning to the bench against Tottenham. Ederson will also come back into the starting XI and there could be a first Premier League start since August for Kevin De Bruyne.
Man City predicted lineup vs Burnley (3-2-4-1): Ederson; Walker, Dias, Ake; Rodri, Kovacic; Silva, De Bruyne, Foden, Grealish; Alvarez.
It's been over two weeks since Burnley were last in action but they're still without exciting young winger Luca Koleosho due to a knee injury. The Italian isn't expected to return until March.
Kompany otherwise doesn't have too many concerns, though Charlie Taylor and Jordan Beyer are both doubts.
Burnley predicted lineup vs Man City (4-4-2): Trafford; Vitinho, O'Shea, Beyer, Al-Dakhil; Gudmundsson, Cullen, Brownhill, Odobert; Foster, Amdouni.
Burnley will be considerably fresher for this fixture but the visitors are still going to have to pull off a mini-miracle to escape the Etihad with anything but a comfortable defeat on Wednesday.
The Clarets have evolved into a meek iteration of their once exuberant second-tier selves and are not capable of stunning this City side in their current mood. Guardiola's men weren't at their absolute best on Friday night but got a huge monkey off their backs by finally scoring and winning in N17.
The hosts should win at a canter on home soil.