Bristol City vs Manchester City – Tuesday, 8:00pm
There will not be many who give the hosts Bristol City much of a chance against Manchester City in the FA Cup fifth round on Tuesday.
The Premier League champions are heavy favourites with Nigel Pearson’s men available to back at around 12/1.
But City simply do not get undone by lower league opposition. Pep Guardiola’s squad has such depth that City usually steamroller whichever minnows are put in front of them.
You have to go back five years to City’s last defeat to lower league opposition when Wigan won 1-0 in the FA Cup fifth round at the DW Stadium.
This time around City have been paired against Chelsea and Arsenal – and they fielded very strong teams in both games.
At Ashton Gate on Tuesday expect Guardiola to ring the changes. He will have one eye on the weekend’s tussle with Newcastle in the Premier League, but he will field a side that can get the job done against their Championship rivals.
John Stones, Aymeric Laporte and Kevin De Bruyne are likely to be left out again, but Kalvin Phillips could get another run-out, while Phil Foden could also start.
The chopping and changing does not usually disrupt how City play and with the hosts averaging under 50% in the Championship in home games, expect City to dominate the ball.
Bristol City have only conceded two goals or more once in 12 games and they are in the midst of a 12-game unbeaten run. But they will not have faced the likes of Erling Haaland, Foden and Jack Grealish thus far and City should prove too good.
Bristol City have seen their last four games go under 2.5 goals, but that bears little significance against a City attack that has plundered 89 goals so far.
More telling may be the hosts’ own goalscoring record. They have only scored more than one goal once in their last five games and City will dominate possession to such an extent that Pearson’s men will be left to feed off scraps.
City are yet to concede a goal in the FA Cup this season and a win to nil scoreline might be worth backing.
Key stats
- Man City have won their last three matches against Bristol City in all competitions
- Bristol City have seen over 2.5 goals in their last three matches against Man City in all competitions
- Man City have scored at least two goals in their last three matches against Bristol City in all competitions
- Man City are unbeaten in their last five games in all competitions
- Man City have scored 15 goals in their last five games
- Bristol City are on a 12-match unbeaten run in all competitions
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