Manchester City vs Liverpool 04/01/19

04 January 2019

The first Premier League derby in 2019 will take place at the Etihad Stadium where Manchester City tackle Liverpool hoping to wrap up all three points and close the gap on the leaders.

The Citizens failed to live up to expectations in December as Pep Guardiola’s crew lost three out of last five Premier League clashes which saw them drop down to the second place in the table. After losing two straight league clashes for the first time since Guardiola’s arrival, the reigning holders secured a 3-1 road win over Southampton as they currently trail Liverpool by seven points. A disappointing 3-2 to Crystal Palace last time out has brought Manchester City’s nine-game home winning league run to an end, as it was also the fifth consecutive home game in which the Citizens failed to keep a clean sheet. Still, their tally of 35 scored goals at home is the league’s high, with Manchester City being the only team in the English top flight to score at least two goals in each of their ten home clashes this campaign.

Meanwhile, the visitors are looking to extend their impressive 20-game lossless streak in the Premier League as they remain the only unbeaten side in the English top tier competition. The Reds have racked up a nine-game league winning run, securing four successive road triumphs in the process, as they reside the only team in the league that is yet to suffer a failure away from home. Jurgen Klopp’s men come into this meeting after an outstanding 5-1 home win over Arsenal, which was the sixth consecutive Premier League encounter in which they’ve scored at least two goals. What’s more, Alisson Becker has kept a clean sheet in six out of last nine league outings as he remains the only goalkeeper who is yet to concede more than one goal per match this campaign. No team conceded fewer goals on the road than Liverpool (5) this season, with the Merseysiders keeping a clean sheet in five out of ten road meetings so far.

Provisional line-up – Manchester City:

Gk: Ederson Defense: Zinchenko – Laporte – Kompany – Danilo Midfield: David Silva – Fernandinho – Bernardo Silva Attack: Sterling – Aguero – Mahrez

Provisional line-up – Liverpool:

Gk: Alisson Defense: Robertson – Virgil van Dijk – Lovren – Alexander-Arnold Midfield: Fabinho – Wijnaldum – Henderson Attack: Mane – Firmino – Salah