Manchester City will be looking to put additional pressure on current league leaders Liverpool with a victory over in-form Southampton at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday. The Citizens have two games in hand on Liverpool due to their Capital One Cup, FA Cup and Champions League fixtures, and the Reds are four points clear at the top of the table. City will have a direct clash with Liverpool next weekend, but before that match Manuel Pellegrini and his players will want to secure the three points against the Saints.
Pellegrini's men have won 13 of their 14 league games at Etihad Stadium this season, the only defeat was against Chelsea in February. Sergio Aguero could miss out once again after picking up a knock against Barcelona in March. Southampton managed to snatch a 1-1 draw at home against City and have scored 10 goals in their last three games. Jay Rodriguez, Adam Lallana and Rickie Lambert have been Southampton's main source of goals, with all three players having found the net in last Saturday's 4-0 win over Newcastle. The Saints are currently eighth in the Premier League table.
Left back Luke Shaw, who could well make England's World Cup squad, feels Southampton can advance to even greater results. "I think in the next year or so we can be challenging the top five teams," he said. "They've got to get the manager down on a long-term contract, which will probably be the first thing they try and do." Victor Wanyama could make his return for Southampton following a calf problem, but Kelvin Davis (back), Nathaniel Clyne (groin) and Maya Yoshida (knee) remain sidelined. Micah Richards and Matija Nastasic (both knee) could also miss out for Manchester City.
Here are the odds for Saturday's match at Bet365:
Manchester City win - 1/3
Draw - 19/4
Southampton win - 9/1
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