Having been held to a 0-0 draw midweek against a stern Everton side, the Blues welcome Crystal Palace who, despite being beaten by rock-bottom Aston Villa on Tuesday night, are having a quietly good season and lie in 8th place.
Manchester City midfielder Fabian Delph spoke prior to this game describing the clash against Alan Pardew’s men as a game City need to win. City were spared their blushes on Wednesday evening when Joe Allen struck a late equaliser for Liverpool in their game against top-of-the-table Arsenal at Anfield – a game which could have seen a six-point gap between City and Arsenal had Wenger’s side held on to their 3-2 advantage.
However, in what has been a topsy-turvy season, and one in which no side has taken the impetus and been ruthless in manner, the top of the table remains a close affair with City currently three points off top spot.
City will view the clash against Palace as a game they need to win, with Arsenal’s tricky trip to Stoke and Leicester away at a newly-buoyed Aston Villa, a win tomorrow could see City go first in the rankings, a position they haven’t been in all that long in this season.
As for the Eagles, their form has seen a slight dip with the loss to Villa on Tuesday night marking their fourth consecutive league match without a goal. A raft of injuries to key players hasn’t helped Pardew’s outfit as Yannick Bolasie (hip) and Dwight Gayle (hamstring) remain sidelined.
City will be without forward Wilfried Bony (calf), Brazilian Fernandinho (muscle strain), centre-back Eliaquim Mangala (hamstring) and, of course, long-term absentees Vincent Kompany (calf) and Samir Nasri (knee).
Last time the teams met was at Selhurst Park, at the beginning of the season, in a game which seemed to be fizzling out before youngster Kelechi Iheanacho snatched victory for City right at the death.
