EPL Betting – Man. City, Liverpool Meet Again
By Zack Garrison in News
Updated: January 17, 2018 at 9:39 am ESTPublished:
Manchester City (+170) at Liverpool (+165), Draw (+235)
Just three days after meeting in the Capital One Cup final, Manchester City and Liverpool will square off again, this time at Anfield in English Premier League action (today at 3:00 PM Eastern).
On Sunday, City lifted the Capital One Cup at Wembley Stadium after winning on kicks. The game was level at 1-1 after full time, but Liverpool only managed to convert one of four tries in the shootout, falling 3-1.
The two goalies, Willy Caballero and Simon Mignolet, both played inspired soccer, keeping the game level despite numerous chances for both sides.
Today’s clash will have a decidedly different feel. Liverpool will be looking for payback time and to climb a few positions higher in the table. Currently sitting in ninth-place, the Reds needs to make up a lot of ground in order to claim a spot in next year’s European tournaments.
For City, the game is a must-win if they want to keep their title hopes alive. The Citizens are a distant fourth at the moment, nine points back of league-leading Leicester City.
City were within striking distance a couple weeks ago, but have dropped two straight in the EPL to key opponents, falling at home to Leicester (3-1) and second-place Tottenham (2-1). A third straight loss would be devastating for a squad that started the season as title favorites.
Today’s game will mark the return of City striker Raheem Sterling to Anfield. Sterling left Liverpool this summer, lured by City’s £49 million offer. ”I don’t know which will be the starting XI on Wednesday but one player I am sure will start is Raheem Sterling,” said Manchester boss Manuel Pellegrini to ESPN FC.
Sterling hasn’t lived up to expectations, though, scoring just five goals and adding two assists in 24 games. He also failed to convert on a glorious chance last Sunday, getting stymied by Mignolet.
. The Citizens haven’t won at Anfield since 2002-03, and Liverpool have won the last two in the series at home. They’re having a bit of a down year, but proved to be a match for City on neutral ground last weekend and should fare just as well at home.
Pick: Draw (+235).
(Photo credit: Ronnie Macdonald (flickr) [https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/legalcode]. Photo has been cropped.)
Sports Writer
Zack is a tour guide whose favorite sports are football, baseball, and golf. He enjoys giving obnoxious commentary during games and hopes to some day write a book about sports. His favorite underdog victory was the Diamondbacks beating the Yankees in game 7 of the World Series.
