Man City v Everton Premier League Preview: Have The Toffees Got The Firepower To Inflict More Woe On City?

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Manchester City, play David Moyes’ Everton in the Premier League at the Eastlands Stadium on Saturday.

Manchester City despite their riches find themselves just 3 points off the drop-zone and go into this clash with Everton on the back of a dismal run of form, which has seen the Blues win just once in the last 7 Premiership matches and slide down the Premier League table. City have yet to draw a match at the Eastlands this season, winning 4 and losing 4 of 8 games at home so far, with their last win the 3-0 defeat of Arsenal at the Eastlands. Something manager Mark Hughes will hope to rectify against Everton on Saturday.

The Toffees have been superb on their travels away from Goodison Park this season, with Everton only losing twice, while winning five and drawing the other of their 8 away games. It is Everton’s home form that will worry Moyes, with the Merseyside club only managing to win once at home so far this season, but for their poor form at Goodison, where they lost 3-2 to Aston Villa last week, Everton could have found themselves higher in the table than the 8th place they occupy now.

Hughes expects to have British record signing Robinho available for the clash with Everton, with the Brazilian expected to recover from a sprained ankle, but the visit of the Toffees could come to soon for compatriot Elano (groin) and Gelson Fernandes, who is still struggling with a hamstring injury. Michael Johnson (groin) Martin Petrov (knee) and Valeri Bojinov (calf), will all miss the clash with Moyes’ side.

Everton have a striker crisis at Goodison Park, with Yakubu (calf), and James Vaughan (knee) both ruled out. Summer signing Louis Saha is still struggling with a hamstring injury, but Moyes could be tempted to name him on the bench due to the lack of strikers available to the Toffees. Defenders Tony Hibbert (groin), Lars Jacobson (shoulder) and Nuno Valente (knee), will all miss the trip to City.

Manchester City: (from) Hart, Dunne, Richards, Garrido, Ball, Onuoha, Zabaleta, Ireland, Wright-Phillips, Robinho, Jo, Vassell, Schmeichel, Mills, Caceido, Hamann, Evans, Castillo, Ben Haim, Benjani, Sturridge, Etuhu, Logan, Kompany, Glauber

Everton: (from) Howard, Lescott, Jagielka, Yobo, Baines, Van der Meyde, Castillo, Saha, Arteta, Turner, Cahill, Neville, Pienaar, Osman, Nash, Fellaini, Rodwell, Jutkiewicz, Anichebe, Ruddy, Gosling, Kissock, Baxter, Irving, Agard, Wallace

Man City v Arsenal Premiership Preview: Schmeichel In For Hart For City – Fabregas Suspended & Walcott Injured For Gunners

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Manchester City play, Arsene Wenger’s Arsenal in the Premier League at the Eastlands Stadium on Saturday.

Mark Hughes will be hoping his City side can capitalise on Arsenal’s up and down form this season in the Premiership. However, the Blues have also been inconsistent and go into this clash with the Gunners with only a point from their last four games in the Premier League after halting a run of three straight defeats last weekend in the 2-2 draw with Hull City at the KC Stadium. This slide in form sees City in 12th place in the table, but only a point off the relegation zone.

Gunners boss Wenger will be looking for his young Arsenal side to bounce straight back after losing 2-0 to Aston Villa at the Emirates Stadium last week after beating European Champions Manchester United the week before. However, Arsenal are still 4th
points if they are to close the nine-point gap on Chelsea and Liverpool at the top of the table.

City are unable to call on Martin Petrov (knee), Valeri Bojinov (calf), Michael Johnson (groin) or Daniel Sturridge (ankle) for the visit of the Gunners. Kasper Schmeichel is set to replace Joe Hart in goal for the Blues, with Hart ruled out for a month with an ankle injury.

Arsenal will be without long-term injury Tomas Rosicky (hamstring) along with defender Bacary Sagna (ankle). While Wenger will also be ruing the loss of Theo Walcott, who will be out for three months after dislocating his shoulder on International duty with England.

Wenger has also revealed that Kolo Toure is a major doubt and that he is yet to assess the fitness of Emmanuel Adebayor and Carlos Vela after the midweek International’s.

Wenger told Arsenal TV Online: “Kolo Toure is a major doubt. He got an injury on his calf with Ivory Coast. But apart from him and Adebayor, who flies in tonight and I have not spoken to, everybody is OK.

“I will need everybody on board. We only get back Carlos Vela tomorrow morning, maybe the afternoon. So when he lands we will have to transfer him to Manchester.”

Spanish International Cesc Fabregas is suspended, but Wenger has Robin van Persie back from suspension, with Emmanuel Eboue expected to shake off a knne injury in time for the trip to the Eastlands.

Manchester City: (from) Schmeichel, Richards, Onuoha, Zabaleta, Ireland, Wright-Phillips, Robinho, Elano, Vassell, Jo, Garrido, Mills, Fernandes, Calcedo, Hamann, Dunne, Evans, Castillo, Ben Haim, Benjani, Etuhu, Kompany, Logan, Glauber

Arsenal: (from) Almunia, Diaby, Toure, Nasri, Gallas, van Persie, Vela, Denilson, Ramsey, Song, Silvestre, Wilshere, Djourou, Fabianski, Clichy, Mannone, Adebayor, Bendtner, Eboue, Bischoff, Coquelin, Fonte, Gibbs, Hoyte, Lansbury, Merida, Randall, Simpson

Hull v Man City Premiership Preview: Geovanni Set To Face Former Club For Tigers – Dunne & Fernandes Suspended For City

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Hull City, play Mark Hughes’ Manchester City at the KC Stadium on Sunday in the Premier League.

Tigers boss Phil Brown will be hoping his Hull side can get back to winning ways after losing their last three Premier League matches to Chelsea, Manchester United and Bolton Wanderers. However, Hull are still 6th in the Premiership and are still the surprise package of the season, with Brown hoping his Tigers can collect all three points against a City side that are poor away from the Eastlands.

Mark Hughes’ team have only won once on their travels this campaign a 3-0 win at the Stadium of Light against Sunderland in August and go into this clash with Premier League debutantes Hull on the back of a home defeat to Tottenham Hotspur last Sunday. City’s in and out form has seen them slip to 13th in the Premiership, with Hughes hoping his side can start to pick up points on the road to realise a lofty aim of a top-four finish this term.

The Tigers will be without Craig Fagan (broken leg) and Anthony Gardner (thigh) for the visit of City, with Brazilian Geovanni, Marlon King and Daniel Cousin expected to spearhead a three-pronged attack for the Tigers.

Man City are without Martin Petrov (knee), Valeri Bojinov (calf) and Michael Johnson (groin) for the trip to the KC Stadium. While, Richard Dunne and Gelson Fernandes will miss the clash through suspension after being sent off against Spurs.

Hull City: (from) Myhill, Doyle, Dawson, Ahsbee, Turner, Barmby, Windass, Geovanni, Hughes, Duke, France, Garcia, Mendy, Halmosi, McShane, Folan, Boateng, Marney, King, Zayatte, Cousin, Warner, Featherstone, Atkinson, Stelios

Manchester City: (from) Hart, Richards, Ball, Onuoha, Zabaleta, Ireland, Wright-Phillips, Robinho, Elano, Vassell, Jo, Garrido, Schmeichel, Mills, Calcedo, Hamann, Evans, Castillo, Ben Haim, Benjani, Sturridge, Etuhu, Logan, Kompany, Glauber

Man City v Spurs Premiership Preview: Will The Redknapp Factor Tip The Balance At The Eastlands?

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Mark Hughes’ Manchester City play, Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League at the Eastlands Stadium on Sunday.

City under Hughes and the ADUG are still like City under Eriksson and Shinawatra, with the Eastlands faithful unsure of which side of the Blues they will see on any given day. With Man City going into this clash with a galvanised Tottenham on the back of two successive league defeats to Bolton Wanderers and Newcastle United 2-0, but winning in the UEFA Cup on Thursday. Hughes’ side have looked capable of beating anyone on their day and the new boss will eventually get the balance right in the Blue half of Manchester.

Since the arrival of Harry Redknapp as manager at White Hart Lane from Southampton, Spurs are unbeaten, with the North London club beating Bolton Wanderers and Liverpool and drawing with Arsenal in the Premier League. With Tottenham looking like a completely different side to the team which collected 2 points from their first 8 games in the Premiership under Juande Ramos. Spurs like City also go into this clash on the back of a win in Europe, with Tottenham drubbing Dinamo Zagreb 4-0 in the UEFA Cup on Thursday. However, the North London club still find themselves at the bottom of the table, but under the leadership of Redknapp are not expected to stay there for long.

Hughes is unable to call on Martin Petrov (knee), Michael Johnson (groin) or long-term absentee Valeri Bojinov (calf), but strikers Darius Vassell and Benjani are in contention, with Benjani scoring on his comeback on Thursday in the UEFA Cup.

Redknapp will have to decide whether to put Russian International Roman Pavlyuchenko back in the Spurs starting eleven, who was cup-tied for the match with Zagreb. With Darren Bent finally finding his goal-scoring touch for Tottenham this season after his hat-trick against Zagreb took his tally to nine in all competitions this campaign.

Captain Ledley King should start along with Vedran Corluka, who like Pavlyuchenko was cup-tied in Europe and is set to face his former club. Midfielder Jermaine Jenas could shake off an ankle injury in time, while Gilberto is also a doubt for the trip to the Eastlands. Giovanni is definitely out after picking up an ankle injury on Monday, but Michael Dawson is available again after suspension.

Manchester City: (from) Hart, Dunne, Richards, Zabaleta, Garrido, Hamann, Kompany, Ireland, Elano, Jo, Robinho, Wright-Phillips, Ball, Schmeichel, Mills, Fernandes, Calcedo, Evans, Castillo, Ben Haim, Etuhu, Sturridge, Logan, Glauber, Benjani, Vassell

Tottenham Hotspur: (from) Gomes, Bale, Gunter, Woodgate, Corluka, King, Hutton, Assou-Ekotto, Jenas, Zokora, Huddlestone, Bentley, Modric, Pavlyuchenko, Cesar, Bent, Campbell, Taarabt, Stalteri, Ghaly, Rocha, Lennon, Prince-Boateng, O’Hara, Dawson