Manchester City vs Leeds United

A lopsided Premier League contest pits runaway leaders Manchester City and relegation-battling Leeds United against each other at the Etihad Stadium.

After a thumping 3-0 home win over West Ham United in midweek stretched their winning Premier League streak to nine matches, reigning champions Manchester City are on the verge of winning a third straight top-flight title for the first time in the club’s history. Inspired by the record-breaking striker Erling Haaland, Pep Guardiola’s high-flyers have netted 2+ goals in eight of their last nine league outings, taking their season tally to the division-high 87! Another high-scoring affair is on the cards, as the ‘Citizens’ have beaten Leeds via multi-goal margins in their last three Premier League H2Hs, scoring 3+ goals on each occasion. Adding to this sentiment, Man City have won each of their 14 competitive home games in the build-up to this fixture, only failing to net more than once in one of those victories.

In stark contrast to their hosts’ purple patch, Leeds’ woeful run of four defeats from their last five Premier League matches (D1) has significantly compromised their survival hopes, leaving them level on points with 18th-placed Nottingham Forest at the start of this round. Last weekend’s humiliating 4-1 defeat at Bournemouth was the final straw, as Leeds relieved underperforming boss Javi Garcia and brought in Sam Allardyce to help them avoid relegation. Big Sam’s first assignment will be to plug Leeds’ defensive leaks that have seen them concede 4+ goals in three of their last five league outings. But the ‘Whites’ usually thrive in May as since earning top-flight promotion in 2020, they have a higher win rate (56%) in May than in any other month.