PREMIER LEAGUE WEDNESDAY: The Striker previews MANCHESTER CITY v CRYSTAL PALACE with a recommended BETDAQ bet.
MANCHESTER CITY V CRYSTAL PALACE
8pm We have a crucial midweek fixture in the Premier League on Betdaq Betting Exchange this week! Manchester City host Crystal Palace at the Etihad in the next instalment of the dramatic title race – it could have been even more crucial if VAR didn’t rule out the late West Ham goal on Super Sunday, but here we are. That decision feels like the Premier League title dream may already be slipping away from Pep Guardiola’s side. Lady luck was certainly on Arsenal’s side; the David Raya save, the late Trossard goal, and of course the VAR decision. Obviously we had a huge debate with VAR – I personally feel if you need 20 replays zoomed in you’re gone past “a clear and obvious error” and it also obviously ignores all the Arsenal players wrestling West Ham players too.
The show must continue though, and all City can do is win all their games and see where that gets them. Much has been made about Crystal Palace having two eyes firmly on the Europa Conference League Final and the fact that they play Arsenal on the final day, just days before the Final. You could argue that City will also get the benefit of that here; there’s no way they have their focus anywhere else – just look at how Spurs and Manchester United finished the Premier League season last season before the Europa League Final. With that in mind, there’s absolutely no surprise that City come into the game as the red-hot favourites. City are trading 1.23 with Crystal Palace 15.5 and the draw is 7.8 at the time of writing.
It’s very hard to see past a win here for City, and obviously there’s no prizes for tipping 1.23 shots, so we’ll have to look around the side markets for some value. City’s task is made all the more difficult by getting ravaged by injuries. Rodri, Josko Gvardiol and Ruben Dias all remain sidelined, and the cracks in Guardiola’s backline have been well documented in recent weeks. The 3-3 draw at Everton feels like it was the start of the title slipping through their fingers. It will be interesting to see how much Palace can create here; an average xG created of 1.33 is mid-table, while their xG conceded of 1.37 is similarly mid-table. Not figures that should give City trouble – they have an average xG created of 1.84 which is the best attacking figure in the Premier League, and their xG conceded of 1.12 is also the second best defensive figure.
Oliver Glasner’s side have one enormous eye on the Europa Conference League Final, so you’d have to keep stakes small before seeing the team news here. Glasner will be weighing up every decision carefully with the Final in mind – I know he might get a bit of stick from the media, but he owes Manchester City and Arsenal nothing. His focus should solely be on getting his side to the Final in the best shape possible. I feel we’ll see goals here; City have to try put some sort of pressure on Arsenal with goal difference for the final two games, and Palace could easily field a weakened side too – as well as City being a little leaky at the back recently. Over 2.5 goals is trading 1.48, and that looks worthy of a small investment.
The Striker Says:
One point win Over 2.5 goals at 1.48 with BETDAQ BETTING EXCHANGE
You can view all markets here -> https://betdaq.biz/PLMcCr
