Next clean sheet for the Citizens?

Champions Manchester City get a visit from the north from Leeds. The home side defeated Wolverhampton 1-0 last Saturday in a lacklustre display that saw coach Pep Guardiola’s side maintain their lead at the top of the table. It was also the sixth win in a row in league play!

In the upcoming match, the Spanish coach can now also hope for his team’s 500th goal in league play under his direction. Should he succeed, he would beat Jürgen Klopp’s previous record with the Reds in terms of the number of encounters needed to achieve it, with just 207.

The visitors were beaten 3-2 by third-placed Chelsea and remain in the lower midfield. For the match at the Etihad Stadium between Manchester City vs. Leeds, the forecast includes another home win without conceding a goal.

Manchester City – Statistics & current form

The Citizens won against the Wanderers as described last time, but the victory should have been much higher. The visitors weakened themselves with the dismissal of their Mexican striker Raul Jimenez in the first half and were already harmless in attack. However, Manchester failed to convert a large number of their chances.

Significantly, the winning goal came from the penalty spot. The goal was scored by Raheem Sterling, who is currently the most efficient in the offensive. The striker has scored in the last two league games and is now playing more strongly again after a weaker start to the season.

Does Sterling strike again?

Three of his four Premier League goals this season have come in the last five matchdays. With that in mind, Manchester City’s clash against Leeds is also an interesting one for the odds on his next goal celebration.

The champions can also rely on the home bonus: With six wins, one draw and one defeat, Manchester have the best home record in the British top flight. On top of that, no team concedes fewer goals on home soil and only Chelsea and Liverpool top the 18-goal tally in their eight home games.

City almost always lead at home

As a rule, Manchester set the course for a home win in the first period of the game: Only in the last of six home games won did the hosts not take the break tea with a lead already established.

In light of this, betting on the home side to score in both halves of Manchester City’s match against Leeds is a good idea.

Predicted Manchester City line-up:
Ederson – Cancelo – Dias – Laporte – Zinchenko – Silva – Rodri – Gündogan – Sterling – Gabriel Jesus – Grealish

Leeds – Statistics & current form

The kickers from the “Steel City” gave Chelsea a good show last Saturday, but ultimately came away empty-handed: at Stamford Bridge they were beaten 3-2 due to a goal conceded in injury time.

Youngster Joe Gelhardt was the only one to enjoy Saturday afternoon, however, as he scored an equaliser in only his fourth league game and just a minute after coming on as a substitute.

Bamford must watch again

In the attack, however, Patrick Bamford, an important player, is missing. The striker had celebrated his comeback with a goal on the penultimate matchday after an injury break, but apparently the injury of United’s top scorer in the past two seasons is not yet completely cured.

Instead, he was forced to miss the defeat to Chelsea and is unlikely to feature against Manchester. His absence helps explain why coach Marcelo Bielsa’s side have scored just 17 goals in 16 league games – only five teams in the Premier League are more harmless in attack.

Rafinha is an attacking bright spot

At least Rafinha is impressing in the attack of the 2020 second division champions, accounting for around 41 per cent of all Leeds’ goals and already topping his haul from last season with seven. In his second year with the country’s three-time champions, the Brazilian seems to have fully arrived.

United, moreover, have not been strong away from home: the West Yorkshire footballers have only managed to win one of their eight matches so far (1-3-4). Last year’s ninth-placed team only managed a three-goal win at bottom-of-the-table Norwich.

Predicted Leeds line-up:
Meslier – Ayling – Llorente – Firpo – Shackleton – Forshaw – Dallas – Roberts – Harrison – Rafinha – James

Manchester City – Leeds Direct Comparison / H2H Record

Leeds have not been among City’s favourite opponents in the recent past. For four league games in the last 18 years, the champions have not won against the team from Elland Road (0-2-2). Only in the last 16 of the FA Cup in 2013 did the home side manage an emphatic 4-0 win in front of their own crowd.

For the upcoming edition of Manchester City vs Leeds, the odds nevertheless point unmistakably in the direction of a home win.

Manchester City – Leeds bet

Manchester recently defended their top spot in the table with a home win over Wolverhampton. The success was achieved without conceding a goal and this course of play has almost been the rule in the champions’ home games so far: the Citizens have only conceded a goal in two of their eight home games!

For Manchester City’s clash against Leeds, the tip therefore aims for a home win, including a clean sheet. The home side boast the best home defence and the visiting 1972 FA Cup winners have had manageable success on the offensive this season.

With around one goal per league game, United’s attacking line rather takes a back seat in the league-wide comparison. The prediction is also supported by the fact that the visitors’ best striker of the past two seasons, Patrick Bamford, will probably have to miss out again due to injury.

Unibet offers odds of 1.82 on the clash between Manchester City and Leeds