Jamie Jackson was at the Etihad. Here’s his report. Thanks for reading this MBM.
Unai Emery’s turn. “Good evening … we lost the last minute but competed well … we were trying to win the match as well … they scored and we didn’t … over 90 minutes they dominated but we were competitive and had our chances … we take a lot of positive things … I will analyse the match … but use positive things for Saturday [in the FA Cup] … separate each competition … focus quick for Saturday … positive information … full, positive energy … we try to accept it … we have to keep going … we want to keep the level we are achieving … I am so happy with the players … of course I am disappointed but I cannot waste time … tomorrow a day off … Thursday and Friday positive and we work hard.”
Pep Guardiola speaks to Sky Sports. “We are not used to winning last-minute … Liverpool, how many times with Jurgen … Arsenal as well with Mikel … we are not used to … so I am really happy … we are in the last four or five games for Champions League … Aston Villa is one of the best teams in Europe … we played really good … aggressive in duels … the back four was unbelievable … really pleased with the game we played … football is emotion … we have a lot of pressure for the Champions League next season … I was so happy … I have to admit it … 1-1 was not a bad result but the action from Jeremy [Doku] was brilliant … in football there is disappointment but also good moments … the team fought a lot … the performance was really good in all departments … fantastic … we were able to do it … the season has been bad … not good … it doesn’t matter if we reach the FA Cup final or qualify for the Champions League … the reality is that … what makes you feel the season is good is the Premier League … not the Champions League, not the FA Cups … the consistency in the Premier League, and we have not been … but it happens … the level of Premier League teams is outstanding … since the Bournemouth game in the FA Cup the team change … against Man United and Everton we didn’t play good but we fought … we tried to win duels … that is the principle and this season we did not have that energy for many reasons … a lesson for the next season.”
Youri Tielemans talks to Sky. “It was so frustrating to lose in the last minute … we fought really hard … we blocked pretty much everything … to lose on the last action was so frustrating … we got the first chance, they got the last one, they score, we don’t, that’s football, you know … just really frustrating … we’ve got four games in the Premier League left and will give our all … a good result and get back to where we want to be … hopefully in the Champions League positions … analyse and see where we can be better … Saturday we have the FA Cup semi-final and hopefully we can win … we will have a tough night, then focus on that.
Matheus Nunes speaks to Sky. “The game was very important … a very tough game … a very tough opponent … we came with the mentality that we needed to win this game and that’s what happened … the goal couldn’t have come at a better time … every three points until now until the end of the season is going to be very important … we want to win the FA Cup semi-final.”
Ruben Dias adds: “It was a special game to get the three points … four games to go … all massively important … we keep on going … we know how tight it is and is going to be until the end … important … I can’t quantify it … this means everything to us … we know the circumstances we are in … top four, top five means everything to us … this is our Premier League this season … this is our main trophy … of course we still have the FA Cup and Club World Cup but this right now means everything to us … we wouldn’t want to win the game in any other way!”
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It certainly felt like City had much the better of that second half, and that on balance they deserved the victory overall. The expected goals, though? City 1.09, Villa 1.68. Strange game, football.
That’s a massive win for the outgoing champions. Manchester City left it so, so late, but on the balance of play in the second half, it’s nothing more than they deserved. Villa defended staunchly, but City kept pressing and eventually the dam broke. Just in time for them as they rise to third place, looking much more comfortable now in the race for a top-five spot. Pep Guardiola spends a good couple of minutes shoving various members of his team in the giddy style; he knows how important these three points are. They go into their FA Cup semi-final with Nottingham Forest this weekend in good spirits; Villa have to pick themselves up before their semi showdown with Crystal Palace. They’ve lost ground in the fight for a spot in next year’s Champions League, remaining in seventh, having now played one more match than Forest, Newcastle and Chelsea. And that’s now eight goals conceded this season after the 90-minute mark, and 15 straight defeats in this fixture. No wonder Unai Emery looked so sick.
FULL TIME: Manchester City 2-1 Aston Villa
Blue Moon rising! A huge win in the chase for Champions League qualification!
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Liverpool | 33 | 44 | 79 |
| 2 | Arsenal | 33 | 34 | 66 |
| 3 | Man City | 34 | 23 | 61 |
| 4 | Nottm Forest | 33 | 14 | 60 |
| 5 | Newcastle | 33 | 18 | 59 |
| 6 | Chelsea | 33 | 18 | 57 |
| 7 | Aston Villa | 34 | 5 | 57 |
| 8 | AFC Bournemouth | 33 | 12 | 49 |
| 9 | Fulham | 33 | 3 | 48 |
| 10 | Brighton | 33 | 0 | 48 |
| 11 | Brentford | 33 | 6 | 46 |
| 12 | Crystal Palace | 33 | -4 | 44 |
| 13 | Everton | 33 | -6 | 38 |
| 14 | Man Utd | 33 | -8 | 38 |
| 15 | Wolverhampton | 33 | -13 | 38 |
| 16 | Tottenham Hotspur | 33 | 10 | 37 |
| 17 | West Ham | 33 | -18 | 36 |
| 18 | Ipswich | 33 | -38 | 21 |
| 19 | Leicester | 33 | -46 | 18 |
| 20 | Southampton | 33 | -54 | 11 |
90 min +6: Amid the hubbub, De Bruyne is replaced by Akanji.
90 min +5: The Etihad explodes! Pep celebrates wildly. The blood drains from Unai Emery’s face. That is huge!
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GOAL! Manchester City 2-1 Aston Villa (Nunes 90+4)
A huge goal! Doku takes Disasi on down the left in a footrace. He wins it easily and reaches the edge of the box. He curls a low ball through the six-yard box. Nunes arrives at the far stick and slots low and hard from a not particularly inviting angle! What a finish! What a finish.
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90 min +3: From the corner, Dias wins a header but can only waft it harmlessly into Martinez’s arms.
90 min +2: De Bruyne works his way down the right and wins yet another corner, this time off McGinn. He’ll take it himself.
90 min: Villa have conceded seven goals after the 90-minute mark during this season. Only Southampton, with nine, have a worse record in this regard. There will be five extra minutes.
89 min: Unai Emery paces up and down the touchline with his hands on his hips. A study in anxiety. Pep not particularly calm either. The next few minutes so important to both teams. Villa a little more so seeing they trail in the table.
88 min: Nope. Gvardiol clears it. Malen has a dig from the edge of the box but there’s no pace on the shot and it’s an easy claim for Ortega.
87 min: Malen comes on for Rogers, and wins a corner down the right with his first act of the game. Villa’s first corner of the second half. Not a smash-and-grab, surely?
85 min: Dias steps across Watkins to guide the ball back to his keeper. Watkins is then booked for an irritable tug at Dias’s shoulder. Silva wants more, and goes into the book as well for saying his piece.
83 min: Watkins is found alone on the edge of the City D. He dinks the ball over Ortega, but fails to hit the target, and then the flag goes up correctly for offside anyway. Both sides getting a little scrappy.
82 min: McGinn is robbed in the centre circle by Silva, and Marmoush sends the loose ball down the middle to release Doku. But the whistle goes for a foul on McGinn, who was clipped by Silva. The City midfielder livid, but there was contact on the Villa captain’s ankle.
80 min: … so having said that, De Bruyne sends Doku dribbling at pace down the left with a raking pass. The ball’s worked left to right for Gundogan, who slips Marmoush clear down the channel and into the box. Marmoush slots across Martinez and into the bottom left. A crisp finish. The only problem being, he’s well offside. Up goes the flag.
79 min: Villa ping the ball around in pretty triangles. McGinn slips Digne into space down the left but the resulting cross is easy pickings for Ortega. Villa are beginning to enjoy some decent possession for the first time in a while.
77 min: McGinn spins Nunes deep in Villa territory and is tugged back for his trouble. Nunes goes into the book.
76 min: Villa make another double change. Rashford and Onana make way for Watkins and Asensio. Rashford is bid a fond farewell from the City fans, as you’d expect.
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74 min: Nunes crosses long from the right. O’Reilly heads back across goal. Gundogan cushions down for Marmoush, who slices wide left. City getting closer to a winner. They’ve certainly looked the most likely since the restart. McAtee is then replaced by Doku.
72 min: Kovacic slips a ball down the inside-left channel for O’Reilly, who slips as he enters the box but doesn’t make any fuss about a potential penalty.
71 min: Gvardiol is booked for a clumsy late swipe at Tielemans.
70 min: O’Reilly is some prospect. He’s been involved in six goals in his last six games, scoring four and setting up two. Not bad when you consider the 20-year-old has played a grand total of 14 first-class matches to date.
68 min: City are rapping at the Villa door, and O’Reilly is causing all sorts of bother. Another low cross leads to panic in the Villa defence, and the ball’s sent out for the umpteenth corner of the second half. From De Bruyne’s deliver, Gvardiol clanks a header over.
66 min: O’Reilly crosses low from the left. McAtee gets in ahead of Torres, only to fresh-air swipe from six yards. Martinez claims. “Weighing into the ticket price issue, I’ve done some nerdy research,” reports Pete Moxon. “When I started going to Villa Park (1976) it was a quid for my Dad and 50p for me. According to the Bank of England inflation calculator, that’s £6.65 for an adult ticket in today’s money. If it had cost what it does now (ten times more), I might have gone as a birthday treat. Certainly not a weekly father-and-son ritual.”
65 min: Marmoush wriggles down the inside-left channel but can’t get the better of Kamara and eventually concedes a foul. The crowd, still smarting at the perceived injustice of the correctly awarded penalty, seethe in the pantomime style.
63 min: Kovacic meets a half-cleared free kick by shooting from distance through a packed box. Martinez claims. Villa counter, Rashford tearing free down the right, rounding Dias and Ortega on the right, but slamming his shot into the side netting. It was an extremely tight angle. Both teams creating chances again.
62 min: McGinn and Disasi come on for Ramsey and Cash.
60 min: With everyone expecting Tielemans to cross towards the far stick, Ramsey makes a dummy run down the inside-right channel. Tielemans tries to find him but slaps the ball straight into the nearest defender. But he snags the rebound and dribbles his way into the box down the channel. Fine improvisation, but his cutback is easily cleared. City break quickly, and suddenly McAtee latches onto a bouncing ball down the left. Martinez is in no-man’s land. McAtee lobs the keeper, but the shot sails wide right of the unguarded net. End-to-end entertainment!
59 min: Rogers shimmies in from the right and is clipped by Gvardiol. Free kick, and a chance for everyone to line up along the edge of the City penalty box. Tielemans to take.
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58 min: De Bruyne, the old boy covering the hard yards this evening, trots across to take the corner from the left. Martinez snaffles this one without fuss. Villa haven’t got going since the restart. Ollie Watkins soon?
57 min: Digne concedes a cheap corner, which De Bruyne swings in from the right. Dias meets it with a volley, six yards out. It’s deflected wide right. The next corner is deflected wide left. Another corner coming up, City’s sixth of the second half. Villa being pinned back here.
55 min: Nunes slips De Bruyne into space down the right. De Bruyne loops it long. At the far stick, Cash heads out backwards from of his six-yard area towards O’Reilly, who shanks a volley well wide left. The hosts have been the better side since the restart.
53 min: Martinez releases the ball. From behind, as everyone empties the box, Gundogan gives the keeper a cheeky clip upside the head. Martinez goes down. He’s not happy. The ref tells him to get up, while Gundogan has a furtive giggle with De Bruyne.
52 min: One corner leads to another, then another, and finally Martinez claims.
51 min: McAtee sends the free kick into the box, a sensational outswinger to the far stick. Gvardiol prepares to slam home from six yards only for Onana to extend a leg and divert it wide right for a corner. That’s wonderful play all round.
50 min: O’Reilly drives down the left, holding off Rogers all the way. He sashays infield and is tugged back one too many times by Rogers. Over he goes for the free kick, while Rogers goes into the book.
48 min: Marmoush is constantly in motion, a class act. He bustles down the inside-left channel and nearly manages to release O’Reilly into the Villa box, but the final ball doesn’t quite come off.
47 min: Rogers chases a long ball down the middle. Gvardiol comes across to put a stop to his gallop? Illegally? Rogers thinks so, but the referee doesn’t. “£292!” splutters Zach Neeley. “That’s $400 here in the states, where we need all of it to pay for things under our “shoot ourselves in the foot” trade policy. Are there not what we would call nosebleed seats in the premiere league? In my younger days I used to hike to a vertigo inducing top row of the local basketball arena (our version of the Spurs, Victor Wembanyama could probably high five me up there) and didn’t feel like I wasn’t going to fall off the earth til I’d had a beer, but it was cheap.”
City get the second half underway. No changes.
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HALF TIME: Manchester City 1-1 Aston Villa
The scoreline seems about right on the balance of play. A very entertaining game between two progressive, easy-on-the-eye sides. Well worth £292 for a family of four.
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Key event
45 min +4: Rashford tries to bring the ball down on the edge of the City D. He can’t get it under enough control to shoot. Kovacic comes across, hangs out a leg and shoves him over, but the referee’s not interested in blowing for a foul. Rashford’s turn to look perplexed.
45 min +2: McAtee curls in from the right but Marmoush, haring along the opposite channel, can’t bring it down. Goal kick.
45 min: There will be four additional minutes.
44 min: Martinez passes out from the back, beating the high City press. Digne advances down the left and wins a corner. From the set piece, Onana wins a header and powers it goalwa … no, it’s heading wide from close range. A bad miss, and the ball clatters into poor O’Reilly’s startled mug. City clear their lines, the whistle goes for a foul on a defender, and O’Reilly shakes his head briskly to recover. Villa finishing this half strongly.
42 min: Rashford’s dismal delivery fails to beat the first man, and City launch a counter attack. Marmoush accelerates down the left, drifts infield, and looks to have been dragged back by Rashford. It should be a free kick and a booking, but the referee waves play on. The City fans not happy. Marmoush not best pleased either.
41 min: Marmoush skittles Tielemans out on the Villa right. A free kick and a chance for the visitors to load the box. Rashford to take.
39 min: Digne loops a pass down the inside-left channel for Rashford to chase. Rashford gets ahead of Dias as he enters the box, but can’t connect with the bouncing ball as he tries to steer it past Ortega.
38 min: Kovacic, under no pressure whatsoever in the centre circle, sends a pass whistling into the stand to the left. On the touchline, a disbelieving Pep holds his head in his hands.
37 min: O’Reilly whips a cross in from the left. Marmoush heads over from six yards. Lovely movement to get in between, and ahead of, Torres and Konsa, but he should have done better with his header. That was a great chance.
35 min: De Bruyne passes out from the back. Digne arrives way late, clips his toe, and goes into the book. He can’t have any complaints about that.
34 min: De Bruyne drops deep and quarterbacks a glorious diagonal pass towards Marmoush out on the left. Just a little too much juice on the ball. Goal kick. Marmoush nearly got to that, though, and had he done so, Villa were in a wee bit of bother.
32 min: Kovacic threatens to burst into the Villa box down the left but is stopped by Tielemans, who telescopes a leg to divert the ball out for a corner. The resulting set piece is met by Gvardiol, who sends his header high and wide.
30 min: Villa throw long into the City mixer. The hosts make a meal of clearing it, but amid a game of penalty-box bagatelle, the ball doesn’t drop for Ramsey and eventually it’s hoicked away from danger.
29 min: De Bruyne looks up for it tonight, perhaps in the mood to prove a point, if his recent remarks about not being offered a new contract are anything to go by. He nicks the ball off Kamara out on the City left and isn’t far away from finding Marmoush in the middle. The ball deflects back to Martinez, who takes some sting out of the game by holding onto possession in the professional clock-management style.
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28 min: Ramsey contests a City throw while turning and catches Silva in the chest with his studs. Accidental, yet a bit reckless, and he’s lucky not to go into the book.
26 min: … so having said that, the volume drops and Villa’s fans break into the Library chant. Kovacic tries to get everyone going again by skelping a long-range shot towards the bottom left, but there’s not enough oomph behind it and it’s easy for Martinez.
25 min: There’s a pleasing edge to this game after that equaliser. Players snapping into their duels. Everyone fully aware of the importance of this match in the race for a top-five finish. The crowd well up for it too.
23 min: Marmoush floats a cross in from the left. De Bruyne tries to flick a header across Martinez but doesn’t get enough on it and the ball floats into the keeper’s arms. This is a lot of end-to-end fun.
21 min: Anyway, that penalty. Dias certainly clipped Ramsey, who slowed down to draw the foul and was certainly looking for it. Clumsy from the defender. “Definitely a pen and not even controversial, he absolutely takes him out,” writes Hugh Molloy. Ramsey slowed down a little and Dias duly ploughed into him. Poor defending. Reckless.”
19 min: City nearly respond in classic fashion. Marmoush nearly gets in ahead of Cash, chasing a simple ping down the middle. Marmoush extends a leg but can’t connect properly. Martinez comes out to block and Konsa clears the loose ball.
GOAL! Manchester City 1-1 Aston Villa (Rashford 18 pen)
To a chorus of boos, Rashford gives Ortega the eyes, sits the keeper down, and rolls elegantly into the bottom right. Pep continues to fume, and is booked for giving the referee the what-for. Game on!
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17 min: The footage goes up on the big screen, and the Etihad erupts in anger. Pep fumes on the touchline. There was plenty of contact, not sure why everyone’s so livid. Anyway, it’s Rashford, parent club Manchester United, to take.
Penalty to Villa!
16 min: … VAR asks the referee to go over to the monitor! Ramsey entered the box down the inside-left channel, getting in ahead of Dias, coming across from the flank. Dias clipped him with his knee, and it’s going to be a penalty.
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15 min: Marmoush, buzzing around in perpetual motion, robs Konsa down the left flank to set City off on another probing mission. Pass, probe, pass. But Villa remain patient, and when they finally snaffle possession back, Rashford goes flying down the left at great speed … and to the soundtrack of pantomime boos. He cuts infield and looks for Ramsey, who looks to have been clipped by Dias in the box. Play goes on. But …
13 min: City are suddenly purring. De Bruyne tries to release McAtee into the Villa box down the inside-right channel with a lob wedge of a pass, but gets a little too much on it. Sand wedge. Martinez claims.
11 min: The more they replay the goal, the more Martinez looks culpable. Two strong hands would have parried that easily. As it was, he flapped, the ball flew downwards and pinged into the bottom right off his body.
9 min: Martinez has a row with the referee about the goal, perhaps arguing that McAtee was offside and somehow affecting play, but the City man’s not in the road. In any case, the keeper probably should have done better. Silva’s shot was straight at him, and it was a weak parry. Martinez follows up mistakes against PSG and Newcastle with another questionable contribution.
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GOAL! Manchester City 1-0 Aston Villa (Silva 7)
An old-fashioned City goal, this. A cut-back from the byline, Marmoush skinning Cash down the left. It’s hammered home by Silva, rushing in and meeting the ball eight yards out. Martinez tries to parry but can only help the ball into the bottom right.
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6 min: City attempt to establish a level of control with some of their trademark patient passing. Villa hold their shape. “On the topic of ticket prices, this feels like the time to ponder an age-old question,” suggests Kieran McKintosh. “When ticket prices are so high, and HD TV commentary with all the angles is so common, is it actually better to have a night in with mates/family watching the game on TV? Someone else on this MBM can do the maths, but surely one or two packs of beers, a big bag of crisps and a pizza or two to share does not cost £229. Not even in London.”
4 min: Cash and Ramsey probe down the right but are forced to turn tail. Villa come again, though, the former looking for the latter in the middle with a low drilled cross. City clear their lines. A lovely open feel to this game already.
2 min: City respond through Marmoush, who advances down the left to win the first corner of the game. De Bruyne’s delivery of it is uncharacteristically poor. What a start to this game, though!
17 secs: Ollie Watkins scored after 34 seconds against Newcastle on Saturday. Marcus Rashford nearly does so after half that tonight! He twists and turns down the inside-left channel before threading a shot across Ortega and off the base of the right-hand post!
Villa get the ball rolling. It’s not a sell-out.
The teams are out. City in their sky blue, Villa in claret. We’ll be off in a minute. “Never mind Ollie Watkins or City’s mid-season collapse,” begins Justin Kavanagh. “The burning question of the day is … what’s with these top-flight footie haircuts that make the barnet look like a swimming cap? That dreaded look, achieved much more cheaply I’m guessing, used to be known in our schooldays as the pudding-bowl haircut. You know you’re getting old when the haircuts of young multi-millionaires are completely baffling to you.” You’re talking about Phil Foden, aren’t you. I’m going nowhere near this subject. Bottom line: what I’d give to be able to still grow a pudding-bowl cut.
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“Together we are stronger.” City’s fans have one or two things to say about that particular philosophical concept, with specific regard to ticket prices, the release of season tickets, and the effect ticketing policy is having on future generations of supporters. They’ve held a protest outside the stadium to tell it as they see it. Preach on, brothers and sisters.
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Pep Guardiola talks to Sky. “Everybody is ready … we need a specific quality from McAtee and hopefully he can help the team and perform well … Villa are an exceptional team … in the best form … the challenge is there … five finals and today is the first one … let’s go … we were so low a month ago … we improve a little bit and hopefully we can be consistent again … we play for different targets that we have been used to in the past but at the same time it is exciting as well … together we are stronger … we want the fans behind us especially in bad moments … we are stronger.”
Unai Emery speaks to Sky Sports. “Good evening … the match today … game 34 … now we are going to play for three points … to be consistent is the most important … the demand for us will be huge … a challenge … try to dominate … duels … feel comfortable … we know all the difficulties we are going to face … it is not a final but it is important … City are favourites … we are motivated and I am very excited.”
He’s pushed on picking Marcus Rashford ahead of the in-form and “fuming” Ollie Watkins, but won’t be drawn, instead simply repeating the word “collective”.
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“Poor Ollie Watkins.” So begins Kieran McKintosh’s email. “Clearly Unai Emery didn’t read Point 3 of the latest Talking Points article. Hopefully Watkins gets subbed on in minute 65 or so and rips it up again. He was a joy to watch last week, and a very likeable player.”
So for those that missed it, here’s what Barney Ronay had to say …
Ollie Watkins has a point. What is the appropriate response to losing your starting place in a team you helped drive into the Champions League, to a loan player who has one goal in nine league games? Watkins said he was “furious” and – also, just to be clear – “angry” after being replaced by Marcus Rashford in attack for the prime games against Paris Saint-Germain. He played like it against Newcastle, scoring after 23 seconds, his 15th of the season in the league, and hitting the woodwork twice. Unai Emery made the entirely correct point in victory that football is a squad game and Watkins a fantastic team player. But he is also 30 this year, Villa’s best forward and would slot nicely into the first XIs of Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United. Maybe don’t make him too angry.
Manchester City make two changes to the team that started the 2-0 win at Everton last weekend. Nico González and Savinho make way for Mateo Kovačić and James McAtee. Ederson is still missing so Stefan Ortega remains in goal.
Aston Villa make four changes to their starting XI after the 4-1 rout of Newcastle United. Pau Torres, Lucas Digne, Amadou Onana, Jacob Ramsey and Marcus Rashford are in; Ian Maatsen, John McGinn, Marco Asensio and Ollie Watkins drop to the bench, while Tyrone Mings misses out altogether. Watkins will very possibly not be 100 percent happy with this turn of events, given how he played on Saturday evening and what he said afterwards.
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The teams
Manchester City: Ortega, Matheus Luiz, Dias, Gvardiol, O’Reilly, Gundogan, Kovacic, Silva, De Bruyne, McAtee, Marmoush.
Subs: Carson, Grealish, Doku, Gonzalez, Akanji, Savio, Khusanov, Foden, Lewis.
Aston Villa: Martinez, Cash, Konsa, Torres, Digne, Kamara, Onana, Rogers, Tielemans, Ramsey, Rashford.
Subs: Olsen, Disasi, Barkley, McGinn, Watkins, Garcia, Malen, Asensio, Maatsen.
Referee: Craig Pawson (South Yorkshire).
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Preamble
The race for a top-five finish is heating up …
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | Newcastle | 33 | 18 | 59 |
| 5 | Man City | 33 | 22 | 58 |
| 6 | Chelsea | 33 | 18 | 57 |
| 7 | Aston Villa | 33 | 6 | 57 |
| 8 | AFC Bournemouth | 33 | 12 | 49 |
… so this is a big one. Ostensibly this is too close to call, with Manchester City coming back into form (four wins in five) and Aston Villa very much in it (ten wins in 11). However City’s current streak in this particular fixture is 14 wins in a row, so while Villa triumphed in the reverse fixture last December, Unai Emery’s side have quite the mental hurdle to clear if they’re to complete their first league double over City since 1962-63. Kick-off is at 8pm BST. It’s on!
