Liverpool vs Man City Preview and Betting Tips

It was another frustrating night for us on Tuesday. City did what I thought they would do apart from one thing….score! Bernardo Silva’s miss at 1-0 down summed up the match and Messi curled in the decisive goal late on. For the third preview in a row The Citizens are involved and hopefully we can finally correctly predict how they’ll play at Anfield. Liverpool vs Man City in the Premier League is always a match to savour and it rarely disappoints. Will Liverpool open up a three point gap at the top? Or can Pep’s men bounce back from their Parisienne nightmare? Check out our big match preview and betting tip below.

Liverpool

Jurgen Klopp’s side enjoyed a much easier task than their opponents in midweek. On Tuesday they beat Porto 5-1 in Portugal, though it must be said they were aided and abetted by the hapless Diogo Costa. It may as well have been Diego Costa between the sticks given the effectiveness of the keeper’s performance. The Reds left the Estadio Do Dragao with three points, braces for both Salah and Firmino and a performance from Curtis Jones that brought back memories of some of his better displays last season.

It has been goals galore for Liverpool in recent weeks. They have scored at least three in their last six games in all competitions. However, defensively, it hasn’t looked quite as rosy, especially in the Premier League. Brentford exposed some big flaws in the 3-3 draw last weekend. Crystal Palace rattled the woodwork a couple of times in what Klopp himself described as one of the hardest fought 3-0 wins he has ever seen a week previously at Anfield.

Even though Liverpool have shown definite weaknesses, they still sit top of the Premier League. They are a point clear of a bunch of five teams on 13 points and they are the only team that remains unbeaten. They’ll be without Alexander-Arnold, Thiago and Elliott on Sunday but Klopp was at least able to take off some of his key men early vs Porto with the game in the bag. No doubt they’ll be keen to put in a big display in front of a packed Anfield on Sunday. If they can score early, it could be a tough afternoon for Pep.

Man City

City can piss right off! They have let us down badly when we have backed them and our opening weekend touch on Spurs to beat them seems like a lifetime ago. I really fancied them to do a job on PSG. I was fully convinced that City would exploit the lack of work rate from Neymar and Messi and to be honest, they did. City missed a number of gilt edged chances and for the most part, PSG played second fiddle. A moment of Messi magic put the final nail in the coffin and City came back from Paris empty handed.

They produced a dominant display against Chelsea in the EPL last weekend. I expected Chelsea to beat them but City went to Stamford Bridge and dominated. They had almost 60% possession and created numerous chances but this time they managed to nick that vital goal through Gabriel Jesus. The game finished 1-0 but in truth, Chelsea could have had no complaints if it was 3-0 or 4-0.

The biggest issue for City may be that they couldn’t afford to rest some of their key players vs PSG. They are missing Ilkay Gundogan with injury too. He was a key goal getter for them last season and his absence has compounded their failure to sign a centre forward. Clearly, this is a match that City are well capable of winning but they could also easily lose. I am a bit surprised to see them priced up as 6/4 favourites on Sunday after their exertions in Paris and those odds are surely a shade skinny.

Liverpool vs Man City Possible Lineups

Liverpool: Alisson, Milner, Van Dijk, Matip, Robertson, Fabinho, Henderson, Jones, Mane, Jota, Salah.

Man City: Ederson, Walker, Ake, Dias, Cancelo, Fernandinho, Rodri, De Bruyne, Grealish, Sterling, Jesus.

Liverpool vs Man City Betting Tip

This is a nightmarish match to try and predict the winner of. Will the version of City that crushed Chelsea at Stamford Bridge show up? Will Liverpool bang in another three goals or will we see more defensive frailties? The bookies make Guardiola’s men favourites at 6/4 and you can back Liverpool at 2/1 with one firm. That does look generous and from a value perspective, 2/1 about Liverpool at home against any side in their current form is a big price.

However, I am steering clear of advising a bet on the match result given how the last couple of weeks have gone. Instead, I am going to have a play on the ‘to be shown a card’ market. With Alexander-Arnold out injured, James Milner will likely start at right back. He was taken off after 66 minutes vs Porto, presumably to keep him fresh.

Milner is a solid performer but he is pushing 36 now and he isn’t as quick as he used to be. He could be up against Sterling or Foden and they have the pace to cause him big problems. He has already picked up one yellow from just two starts in the Premier League and he has a similar record in the Champions League. Milner isn’t shy when it comes to tackling, so, at odds of 3/1, he is worth backing to be shown a card again.

Liverpool vs Man City Betting Tip: James Milner to be shown a card @ 3/1

Key Manager Quotes

Jurgen Klopp: “”It’s better that we don’t have to boost the confidence of the players right now. Sometimes you do from time to time. We have a positive view but we know we haven’t played City yet. They haven’t played us. This is a special game.”

Pep Guardiola: “I am pleased Anfield is full again, it’s nice they come back and we can enjoy a fantastic atmosphere and hopefully we can handle it in a good way. I am sure the players enjoy more to play with fans in Anfield than without. We didn’t win at Anfield I don’t know the reasons, the last 4, 5 years because it’s an exceptional team.”

-DaveStevos