Manchester City vs Salford City: Prediction, Preview & Betting Tips

Manchester City have started to string together a slight semblance of form, following two consecutive league wins against Leicester City (0-2) and West Ham United (4-1). The Citizens are expected to rotate against lower opposition in Salford City, who come into this match on the back of six consecutive victories but will likely face a challenging test against Manchester City.

The hosts have scored first in four of their last five matches, and this season, they have only lost twice at home, both against Tottenham Hotspur (0-4) and Manchester City (1-2). Manchester City's depth in attacking talent, along with their average of at least two goals per game in the Premier League, should position them as comfortable winners in this fixture.

We anticipate Manchester City to assert their dominance in this match against League Two's Salford City. In recent years, the current Premier League champions have demonstrated that encounters like this are simply a formality, and they should easily handle the high-flying Salford City.

Manchester City 3-0 Salford City

Manchester City begin their quest for another FA Cup triumph as they host Salford City at the Etihad, with connections running strong between the two clubs and the Greater area of Manchester.

Date: 11/01/2025
Location: Etihad Stadium, Manchester.
Kick-Off: 17:45 pm

This season, Manchester City have suffered their worst season under Pep Guardiola as the current Premier League Champions are sixth in the league and two points outside the top four occupied by Chelsea. In the UEFA Champions League, they are also struggling to hold on to that play-off spot with a pivotal fixture against PSG on the horizon.

The FA Cup will be seen as a perfect opportunity for the hosts to at least end the season with some silverware in a season filled with dismay. Manchester City’s recent record in the FA Cup has been outstanding. Since 2011, the Citizens have won the tournament three times, reaching the final on no less than five occasions. Arguably, their most famous triumph was in 2023, where Manchester City completed the second leg of their treble-winning season, beating Manchester United 2-1 in the final. Ilkay Gundogan opened the scoring inside 12 seconds.

The likes of Gary Neville and the rest of the Class of 92 will have strong interest in this game, as it potentially allows the club to scope out an upset and further TV revenue. This season, it looks like the Ammies will be making an historic leap into the division above under Football League stalwart Karl Robinson, who achieved promotion with MK Dons. The visitors are third in the league, ten points league leaders Walsall, but their recent form has propelled them to a favourable position with a third of the season remaining.

The game will be live on BBC One and the BBC Sport App, which you can find on any mobile device, computer, or gaming device.

Predicted Manchester City Eleven: Ortega, Lewis, Simpson-Pusey, Gvardiol, Gundogan, O’Reilly, Nunes, Doku, Grealish, McAtee.

Predicted Salford City Eleven: Young, Shephard, Garbutt, Tilt, Ashley, Mnoga, Watson, Fornah, Berkoe, Stockton, Adelakun.

These two sides have never met before in this competition, and this will be the first-ever meeting between two sides deeply rooted in Manchester's essence.

Pep Guardiola’s side have been a pale shadow of their usual ruthless selves this season, which at one point had seen the current Premier League champions win only once in 13 games in all competitions, when they beat Nottingham Forest (3-0). During that miserable run for the Citizens, they fell to defeats against Liverpool (2-0), Sporting Lisbon (4-1) and a 2-1 defeat to local rivals Manchester United in which they conceded two goals in the space of 115 seconds to Bruno Fernandes (penalty) and Amad Diallo.

Manchester City have started to string together a slight semblance of form following two consecutive league wins against Leicester City (0-2) and West Ham United (4-1). The hosts have scored first in four of their last five matches, and this season, they have only lost twice at home, both against Tottenham Hotspur (0-4) and Manchester City (1-2). Manchester City's depth in attacking talent, along with their average of at least two goals per game in the Premier League, should position them as comfortable winners in this fixture.

Salford City are in excellent form heading into this game, where they will undoubtedly be the underdogs in this fixture. The Ammies have won their last six domestic games heading into this one, which has propelled the side into the promotion places in League Two. The visitors have been excellent defensively, with zero goals conceded in six and seven clean sheets from their last eight league games.

Away from home, Salford have a relatively respectable away record in League Two. The Ammies have won four, drawn six and lost only twice on their travels, having won their previous three away league games on the bounce. Salford have scored first in each of their previous six and have beaten strong opponents such as MK Dons (0-1) in recent weeks.

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