Man City host Everton in Saturday's early kick-off and George Pitts has two best bets for you to consider.
Recommended bets
1pt BTTS and 3+ corners each team at 2/1
1pt Richarlison and Gylfi Sigurdsson 2+ shots each at 5/1
For advised bookmakers and each-way terms, visit our transparent tipping record
Manchester City v Everton (1230 KO, Sky Sports Premier League)
There is no good time to be playing Man City these days, but playing them in the immediate aftermath of a defeat is certainly not the best.
Pep Guardiola is a demanding manager and he will be expecting his side to bounce back and show a positive response to their away defeat at Chelsea last week.
They did, at least, beat Hoffenheim in the Champions League in midweek to put the Stamford Bridge loss behind them to some degree, but in the league they know nothing short of three points will do.
They will have to manage without David Silva, who joins Kevin De Bruyne on the sidelines after being ruled out for a 'few weeks' with a hamstring injury,
Everton will be no pushovers, after visible improvements under Marco Silva this season, but they are now on a run of three matches without victory.
After City they face Spurs, before going into the festive period against Burnley, Brighton and Leicester as they look to leapfrog Man United into the top six.
Betting guide
Prediction: Man City 2-1 Everton (Sky Bet odds: 9/1)
A good early kick-off to get the weekend underway and the Citizens should do the job at the Etihad. David Silva will be missed but they have enough in their ranks to dominate possession, create chances and edge a hard-working and talented Toffees' side.
Best bet: BTTS and 3+ corners each team at 2/1
The above RequestABet is appealing due to the fact this could be entertaining with goals for both teams. Man City are good at home, but not invincible and they have conceded to Huddersfield, Newcastle, Southampton, Man United and Bournemouth in the Premier League, so Everton can get on the score sheet. These sides make up the top two for corners taken this season, so three each is not much to ask.
Shots: Richarlison and Gylfi Sigurdsson 2+ shots each at 5/1
While City are expected to enjoy the majority of possession, Everton should get a sniff at the other end and backing their two best players to have at least two attempts each at the above price is really tempting. This does not rely on them being on target - just attempts in 90 minutes - and 5/1 looks generous. Richarlison averages over two shots per game and attempted as many as six against Newcastle earlier this month, while Sigurdsson averages nearly three per game in the Premier League, so this is worth a small play.
RequestABet: Man City to win, over 2.5 total goals, +3 corners each, Sterling +4 shots and Sigurdsson 2+ shots at 12/1
Opta facts and statistics
- In all competitions, Manchester City have won just two of their last seven games against Everton (D3 L2), managing only one clean sheet in this run (0-0 in January 2016).
- Everton have drawn each of their last three away games against Manchester City in the Premier League, with just four goals being scored in these meetings (two each).
- Among teams that have faced Manchester City at the Etihad on 10+ occasions in the Premier League, no side has avoided defeat in a higher percentage of their games than Everton (60% - 15 games, six defeats; the same as Liverpool).
- Manchester City haven't lost a Premier League game against a non "big six" opponent since January 2017 versus Everton. Since then, they have won 139/153 points in these matches (W44 D7 L0).
- Manchester City haven’t lost consecutive Premier League games since December 2016, when they lost against Chelsea and Leicester City.
- Manchester City have won their last nine Premier League home games by an aggregate score of 33-6.
- Manchester City have won just 25% of their Premier League games against Everton under Pep Guardiola (P4 W1 D2 L1) – indeed, only against Liverpool (20%) do they have a lower win percentage in the competition since Guardiola took charge (min. 3 meetings).
- Under Pep Guardiola, Manchester City have conceded seven Premier League goals against Everton – against no other side have they shipped more.
- Since the start of last season, Manchester City’s Raheem Sterling has been directly involved in 26 goals in 21 Premier League home games (17 goals, 9 assists).
- Without Richarlison’s eight league goals this season, Everton would be nine points worse off in the Premier League – no player has seen their goals be worth more points than the Brazilian forward (level with Aubameyang for Arsenal and Murray for Brighton).
Click the image below to get the goals, cards and corner statistics to assist you with your bets this weekend...
Odds correct as of 1600 GMT on 13/12/18