Betting Preview – Swansea v Manchester City
Manchester City will be hoping to keep their Champions League hopes alive, as Manuel Pellegrini signs off his spell as Citizens manager with an away trip to Wales.
Sportingly Better picks out the best bets for the final match of the season, as Manchester City look to find a way to secure European football.
Premier League Betting Tips
Swansea (5.00) v Manchester City (1.60); Draw (4.33)
Swansea
Swansea have somewhat incredibly won their last four matches at home in the Premier League, with Francesco Guidolin’s side seeing off Norwich, Aston Villa, Chelsea and Liverpool.
The Swans head coach looks likely to stay on at the Liberty Stadium, after a largely respectable return of seven wins and three draws from his 15 Premier League games in charge.
That news will likely reaffirm and reignite the clubs transfer plans over the summer, with Americans Steve Kaplan and Jason Levien still in talks about taking a “controlling interest” in the club.
Former manager Brendan Rodgers had been rumoured for a return to the Liberty Stadium, but a recent admission by club goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski has indicated that the coach has the players backing, with the player stating the side had improved since Guidolin’s arrival at the club, when they were 18th in the table.
The south Wales club will enjoy a sixth successive year in the top flight of English football and the hosts will be eager to make it five home wins on the bounce and dent Manchester City’s Champions League aims.
Manchester City
Visitors Manchester City will be looking to build on Manchester United’s failure to beat West Ham on Tuesday night with a trip to south Wales on Sunday.
Manuel Pellegrini will take charge of the Citizens for the final time in his three-year spell at the Etihad Stadium, with the Chilean manager having delivered a Premier League title and the League Cup twice during his reign at the club.
The head coach did however recently admit it would be a “disaster” for the club to miss out on a top-four finish, especially with the high-profile appointment of incoming coach Pep Guardiola, but such is the lure of the former Barcelona and Bayern Munich manager that the only hit for the club in failing to reach the Champions League may be a financial one.
The Citizens did however bounce back from the disappointment of failing to reach the Champions League final with a 2-2 draw against Arsenal last time out, but recent injuries to captain Vincent Kompany and fellow defenders Pablo Zabaleta and Aleksandar Kolarov should leave Swansea with plenty of opportunities to get at the Citizens backline.
The league’s top scorers with 70 goals have all the motivation to be in a rampant mood this weekend, with European football on the line.
Match Odds
The betting odds are firmly in Manchester City’s favour, with odds of 1.60 and with the visitors chasing a top-four finish, backing the motivation of Manuel Pellegrini’s side seems an obvious choice.
Swansea go into the game as big as 5.00 in the match odds and given the hosts have scored four goals away at West Ham last time out and three goals against Liverpool before that, the value clearly lies in backing the free-scoring and in-form hosts particularly on the Asian Handicap markets.
Over/Under 2.5 goals
The market clearly sits with over 2.5 goals trading at 1.53 in the goals markets and given results from both sides it’s easy to see why.
Hosts Swansea have been free-scoring in their last two matches in the Premiership and with all four of Swansea’s last games going over the 2.5 goals mark, Francesco Guidolin’s side will be looking to enjoy their football after securing their top-flight status last month with a 3-1 victory at home to Liverpool.
Visitors Manchester City have been no stranger to goals themselves with six of the Citizen’s last seven games all finishing with at least three goals in the match.
To add to this Golden Boot hopeful Sergio Aguero will of course be looking to overturn Harry Kane to finish as the leading goalscorer in the top flight too.
Verdict
Manchester United’s slip-up at Old Trafford has gifted rivals Manchester City with a free run for a top-four finish and given the motivation for the visitors and also Sergio Aguero on a personal level, expect the Citizens to come away with all three points on Sunday.
Recommended Football Tips
Back Manchester City to win AND BTTS @2.85
Back Sergio Aguero to score anytime @1.60
Author Credit: Jonathan Day
Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/ins11thiago/
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