Positivity’s Roy Hodgson speaks to BT Sport. “I used the word trepidation in a press interview, it’s the word that most sums up one’s feelings. They’ve been so good for a long period, but this season in particular they seem to be climaxing and playing even better still. That performance the other night against PSG is about as close to perfection as you can get. So of course we’re concerned about that. But I could be sitting at home watching them play, not having a team to play against them, and Crystal Palace could be nowhere near the Premier League and dreaming of the day when they once again can play against Manchester City. So you can see things in that light and that’s the most important light for us to see it in today.”
Palace make two changes from the team named ahead of last weekend’s loss at Leicester. Patrick van Aanholt and Jordan Ayew drop to the bench, Tyrick Mitchell and Andros Townsend taking their places.
City, who are looking for their 19th consecutive away win, make eight changes to the team that won in Paris on Wednesday night. Ederson, Joao Cancelo and Rodri are the only players to keep their shirts. John Stones is suspended, while Pep Guardiola names not one, but two strikers in Sergio Aguero and Gabriel Jesus.
Crystal Palace: Guaita, Ward, Kouyate, Dann, Mitchell, Riedewald, Milivojevic, Eze, Townsend, Benteke, Zaha.
Subs: Butland, van Aanholt, Ayew, Mateta, Schlupp, McCarthy, Batshuayi, Cahill, Kelly.
Manchester City: Ederson, Joao Cancelo, Laporte, Ake, Mendy, Torres, Rodri, Fernandinho, Sterling, Aguero, Gabriel Jesus.
Subs: Walker, Dias, Gundogan, Zinchenko, Steffen, De Bruyne, Bernardo Silva, Mahrez, Foden.
Referee: David Coote (Nottinghamshire).
Manchester City have won 31 of their last 34 matches in all competitions, a run that’s seen them win the League Cup, place one foot in the Champions League final, and inch towards the Premier League title. You’d expect the required two wins to become one in a couple of hours, once they’ve played opponents seen off 4-0 at the Etihad in January.
But nobody’s perfect. While Crystal Palace have been given some frightful chasings on their own patch this season – 3-0 by Burnley, 4-1 by Chelsea, 7-0 by Liverpool – and have only picked up nine points from their last ten games, they’ve caused City more problems recently than many. A 2-2 draw at the Etihad last year, for example, and a 3-2 win there the season before that.
So Roy Hodgson will be hoping to channel some of that energy this lunchtime … and that Pep Guardiola makes a raft of changes ahead of Tuesday’s second leg of destiny against PSG. Palace gave Leicester something to think about last Monday, before eventually succumbing; can they pose the champions-elect similar problems? We find out soon! Kick off is at 12.30pm BST. It’s on!
from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/3vtn0KM
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