Manchester City vs. Burnley, Premier League: Team News, Preview, Predictions

Following a very tough European match against Napoli in midweek, Manchester City are back to work this Saturday with a Premier League game against Burnley. The Blues have dominated the league this season, scoring 29 goals in their first 8 matches and looking unstoppable at times.

City have made some good teams look like League One sides, but they will not have an easy game against Burnley. The Clarets are known for their defensive organization and are very well coached by Sean Dyche, who loves to make things difficult for big teams. Burnley have already taken points from big teams this season, winning away to Chelsea and Everton as well as getting a draw at Anfield against Liverpool.

Burnley have lost only once this season and they will come to the Etihad looking to sit back, absorb pressure and hurt the Blues on the counter attack and on set pieces. City fans should not be expecting a big win, but Pep Guardiola’s side should be considered favorites.

MATCH INFO, TV/STREAMING

Date/Time: Saturday, October 21, 2017, 3pm (UK & Nigeria), 10am ET, 7am PT (USA), 7:30pm IST (India)

Venue: Etihad Stadium, Manchester, England

Television: Not Televised (UK), CNBC (USA), SuperSport 5 (Nigeria), Sportsnet (Canada), Hotstar (India)

Online streaming: NBC Sports Live (USA)

(Listings via LiveSoccerTV)

TEAM NEWS

Other than Vincent Kompany and Benjamin Mendy, everybody else is healthy and fit to play this weekend. That includes Sergio Agüero, who looks ready to return to the team after missing the last three weeks with a fractured rib. It is possible that Agüero starts against Burnley, but Pep will most likely name and unchanged side for the fourth game in a row, which shows just how well this team is playing at the moment. They’ll need to play REALLY well against Burnley, so it’s good to have Agüero as an option on the bench if the game is really tough.

POSSIBLE LINEUPS

Manchester City (4-3-3)

Ederson; Walker, Stones, Otamendi, Delph; De Bruyne, Fernandinho, Silva; Sterling, Jesus, Sané

Burnley (4-4-1-1)

Pope; Lowton, Tarkowski, Mee, Ward; Brady, Defour, Cork, Arfield; Hendrick; Wood

PREDICTION

It’s really hard to see City scoring 5 or 7 goals against Burnley, but we’ll get the win and stay on top: 3-1 to the Blues.