Manchester City return to league action on Saturday, as they visit Goodison Park in the first away game of 2015. The Blues are looking to build on Chelsea’s relatively recent poor form of late, but The Toffees will be out to show they can still win big games, despite their recent streak of losses.
It’s just over a month since City last came up against Everton, back when Roberto Martinez’s side made the trip to the Etihad at the beginning of December. That was the last game Sergio Agüero played before picking up an injury early on in that match, that looked like it would rule him out for some while, even if that was not the eventual case. In the grand scheme of things in that match, City eventually came away with a tight 1-0 win thanks to a Yaya Touré.
The corresponding fixture at Goodison Park last season will be well-remembered as playing a big part in the title race. It came in between the two Liverpool games against Chelsea and Crystal Palace, and the 3-2 City win just gave The Blues the impetus to take advantage of Liverpool’s slip up against those two sides. On the day at Goodison, Edin Džeko scored a double, including a towering header past Tim Howard, and Agüero netted the equaliser after Ross Barkley’s opener; Romelu Lukaku got the other Everton goal.
As it stands, Manchester City still have three of their key players on the injury table: Vincent Kompany (calf muscle strain), Džeko (calf) and Agüero (knee ligament). All three are now back in full training, but given City’s past history with rushing players back from injury too early, it’s possible they could miss out of the trip to Everton in order to give them some extra recuperation time. Thankfully, those are the only injury doubts for the Blues.
On the other hand, Everton have quite a few players sidelined for the visit of the champions. Leighton Baines (knock) is the only returnee, whilst ex-City man Sylvain Distin (groin), Steven Pienaar (knee), James McCarthy (hamstring), Tim Howard (calf), Tony Hibbert (muscle), Leon Osman (calf) and Darron Gibson (knee) all miss the visit of City to Goodison.
Both teams will also be without players who’re now with their international sides at the African Cup of Nations. City are without Yaya Touré, who’s with the Ivory Coast, and Everton have lost Christian Atsu, who’s only played 3 times since joining The Toffees anyway.
This game could potentially have big repercussions for both City and Everton, depending on which way the result swings. If City were to win, it could put them top of the league depending on how Chelsea fare at home to Newcastle, with that game happening at the same time as City’s. However an Everton win would not only dent City’s title hopes, but lift The Toffees further away from the relegation zone. As always, the game at Goodison Park will be one to watch.
