Manchester City vs AFC Bournemouth, Premier League Matchday 14: Team News, Preview and Prediction

Competition/Round: 2018/19 English Premier League Season – Matchday 14

Date/Time: Manchester City vs AFC Bournemouth – Saturday, 1 December 2018, 15:00 (UK & Nigeria); 10:00 EST, 07:00 PST (USA); 19:00 IST (India)

Venue: Etihad Stadium, Manchester, England, United Kingdom

Match Officials:

Referee: Stuart Attwell

Assistants: Stuart Burt, Derek Eaton

Fourth Official: Anthony Taylor

TV Info: NBCSN (USA)

Live Stream: NBC Sports Live, Fubo.tv (USA) Fubo.tv shows every Manchester City game with a high-quality and legal stream. New to Fubo.tv? Click here to sign up for a discounted rate.

Radio: BBC Radio Manchester (UK); TalkSport Radio World (USA)

Preview:

Manchester City host AFC Bournemouth at the Etihad Stadium on English Premier League Matchday 14.

The Blues have been running rampant this season, having scored 40 goals in 13 EPL matches. They have only conceded five goals and have earned nine clean sheets. They have also won 11 of their 13 matches, and have drawn the remaining two.

With these impressive results, it is no wonder they currently sit at the top of the table. City hit a stumbling block midweek, however, as Olympique Lyonnais put up a strong performance against the current champions of England. Nonetheless, the Blues will put this match behind them as they need to clear their heads in preparation for their match against Bournemouth on Saturday.

Bournemouth have also had a strong start to their season. The Cherries sit eighth in the table, one point behind Manchester United, and are two points behind sixth Everton. Should they continue this strong performance, the Cherries may fancy a place in the UEFA Europa League next season.

That said, their form against the top clubs has been poor. They have already lost to Chelsea, Manchester United and Arsenal, albeit by an aggregate score of 6-2. They are also winless against City in their previous six encounters. Should Bournemouth hope to steal the show, they will need to learn from these previous performances.

Team News:

Manchester City’s Claudio Bravo, Kevin De Bruyne, Benjamin Mendy, Gabriel Jesus, Bernardo Silva and İlkay Gündoğan are sidelined through injury.

AFC Bournemouth are without Adam Smith, who carries a knee injury. The rest of the traveling squad is fully fit and will participate in this fixture. Jefferson Lerma has fouled out and will not participate in this match.

Possible Lineups:

Manchester City

Formation: 4-3-3

Ederson; Walker, Stones, Laporte, Delph; D. Silva, Fernandinho, Foden; Sterling, Agüero, Mahrez

Manager: Pep Guardiola

AFC Bournemouth

Formation: 4-4-2

Begović; Francis, Cook, Aké, Daniels; Brooks, Gosling, Cook, Fraser; Wilson, King

Manager: Eddie Howe

Prediction:

The Blues have faced the Cherries in the English Premier League on six occasions. Over this spell, City have won all six matches. Moreover, they have won by a combined score of 21-2. They have also kept four clean sheets in their six encounters. With these statistics in mind, City are heavily favoured to win on Saturday.

The Cherries will need to establish a strong charisma if they are to earn a result on EPL Matchday 14. The traveling side is certainly capable of finding the back of the net, as they have scored 22 goals in 13 matches this season. The question, however, is if they are able to produce this form against City on Saturday.

Given the odds, it is hard to go against the EPL’s current league leaders. Anything other than a City victory would surely be a shocking result.

Manchester City 3-0 AFC Bournemouth