English Premier
2013-01-01 - Manchester City vs Stoke City
A Sports Betting Pick by Auls
Football: English Premier League
Tuesday 1 January 2013 - Kick Off 3pm
Manchester City
For the first time for a couple of months, Manchester City really did show a lot of heart and determination to beat Norwich City 3-4 at Carrow Road despite playing almost 50 minutes with just ten men. That result may just see the side turn a corner going into 2013 after 2012 had seen the highs of winning the Premier League and the low of reent struggles to keep tabs on Manchester United.
Manchester City still trail Manchester United by 7 points, while they are still 4 points clear of Chelsea in 3rd place although the latter do have a game in hand. City have not been as dominant at home as they were last season, but they still have a 7-2-1 record here, scoring 22 goals and conceding 9 in those games.
City have won 3 of their last 4 games, but the exception was a 1-0 loss at Sunderland meaning they have lost 2 of their last 5 Premier League games. They had also been on a run of 3 games without a win at the Etihad Stadium in all competitions, but halted that with a last minute winner against Reading in their most recent home game.
Aleksander Koralov and Maicon are both missing, while Samir Nasri is suspended. Mario Balotelli, Micah Richards and Jack Rodwell are also missing.
Stoke City
It has been a pretty good first half of the season for Stoke City and they showed some excellent resolve to earn a 3-3 home draw with Southampton in their last home game. With Everton losing on Sunday, Stoke are the only team that are unbeaten at home this season, while they are the clear draw specialists in the Premier League.
The side moved up to 8th in the Premier League and their 29 points earned means they are well on the way to the 40 point mark that normally signifies safety, a goal that Tony Pulis sets out each season. They have a 1-6-3 away record so far this season, scoring 7 goals and conceding 10 in those games.
Stoke are unbeaten in their last 10 games in the Premier League thanks to Cameron Jerome's last minute equaliser on Saturday. They are unbeaten in their last 4 away games in the Premier League since losing back to back games against Manchester United and Norwich City. Stoke have drawn 3 in a row away from home, the last 2 both being goalless.
Andy Wilkinson should be passed fit for the away side in this one.
Head to Head
Stoke City and Manchester City drew 1-1 at the Brittania Stadium and they have proven a match for the Champions at home, but not so much when visiting the Etihad Stadium.
Manchester City have beaten Stoke in all 4 home games since the latter moved back into the top flight and all 4 wins have come by a couple of goals and with clean sheets to boot.
City won this fixture 3-0 last season.
Prediction
Stoke City have rightly received a lot of plaudits for the way they have defended this season, but I think the pressure that Manchester City can apply will be a little too much for them to cope with.
City have won all 4 Premier League games against Stoke at home, all of those coming by at least 2 goals and I think their win at Norwich City at the weekend may represent a turning of corners.
The home side have struggled somewhat at home in recent games, but I like them to win this by a couple of goals so will back City on the Asian Handicap.
The Statistics :
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The Pick :
Manchester City 2-0 Stoke City
Gooner’s Statistical Value Bet
I'll back Manchester City - 1.5 Asian Handicap @ 1.95
