Manchester City welcomes Leicester to the Etihad this Saturday for the late kick-off in a game that could have a big effect on both ends of the table. Pep Guardiola’s side are looking to stay in the race for the Premier League title whereas Leicester, who are currently without a manager, are in the midst of a tough survival charge.
Man City currently sit second in the Premier League on 67 points after 29 games. City are six points behind top-of-the-league Arsenal but do have a game in hand on the leaders. However, looking down, City have an 11-point buffer between themselves and third-place Newcastle. City also find themselves in the Semi-finals of the Champions League, the first leg of which against Bayern Munich comes before their clash with Leicester.
In their last five Premier League games, Man City have five wins. The end of February saw Man City thrash Bournemouth 4 - 1 with goals from Phil Foden, Julian Alvarez, Erling Haaland and a Chris Mepham own goal. March started with a bang with a needed 2 - 0 win over Newcastle thanks to goals from Foden and Bernardo Silva. Guardiola’s side followed this up with a shaky 1 - 0 over Crystal Palace, a 78th-minute clutch penalty from Haaland handing City all three points.
In City's last two games against Liverpool and Southampton, City won both games 4 -1. Liverpool took the lead early on, but goals from Alvarez, Kevin De Bruyne, Ilkay Gundogan and Jack Grealish gave City the win. On the other hand, a brace from Haaland and goals from Grealish and Alvarez meant that Sekou Mara’s late goal was only a consolation. In the midst of these games City also recorded their biggest-ever win in the Champions League with a 7 - 0 win over RB Leipzig and then a 6 - 0 win over Burnley in the FA Cup.
Leicester have had a rough ride of it as of late, sacking Brendan Rodgers and sitting in 19th. However, The Foxes have just appointed Dean Smith for the remainder of the season and are just two points from safety in one of the closest relegation scraps in recent memory. In their 30 games this season, Leicester have picked up only 25 points and just seven wins.
In their last five Premier League games Leicester have a draw and four losses. Mid-March saw Chelsea travel to Leicester, but despite a goal from Patson Daka, Leicester were unable to come back, especially with 10 men as Wout Faes was sent off late on and Chelsea won 3 - 1. Next was the trip to Brentford, where this time their opponents went a man down, however that wasn’t enough for the win as The Foxes settled for a 1 - 1 draw, Harvey Barnes scoring. Leicester then suffered back-to-back 2 - 1 defeats to Crystal Palace and Aston Villa, The Foxes once again seeing red against Villa, this time Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall being sent off. In their most recent game, Leicester lost 1 - 0 to fellow relegation candidates Bournemouth, pushing another team further away from the drop zone.