Manchester City vs Huddersfield – Match Preview
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Last weekend saw Manchester City pick up where they left off as the defending Premier League champions made relatively light work of Arsenal at the Emirates. A 2-0 win that also came off the back of victory in the Community Shield the week before.
This Sunday sees them play in front of their own fans for the first time this season as they entertain a Huddersfield side that will be ruing the early fixtures that they have been handed. David Wagner’s men were soundly beaten by Chelsea last weekend and could be in for a long afternoon at the Etihad.
For Manchester City, the only real dilemma for manager Pep Guardiola is who to select in his starting eleven. The former Barcelona and Bayern Munich boss already had an embarrassment of riches at his disposal, riches that have now been further supplemented by the arrival of Riyad Mahrez.
The Algerian was unfortunate not to score against Arsenal last weekend as he saw a first half effort curl agonisingly wide of the post. However, his overall performance in North London does suggest that he has done enough to warrant inclusion once more.
The same can also be said for Raheem Sterling, the England international came in for criticism in some quarters after not being able to find the net during the World Cup in Russia. However, he went someway to silencing his detractors when he opened the scoring against Arsenal.
In regard to City’s opponents Huddersfield, they could be in for a long campaign especially as they attempt to avoid the dreaded ‘second season syndrome’ – after the initial high of promotion the difficulty is trying to sustain the level of performance next time around.
A plight that this season will be made even more difficult due to the spending power of promoted sides such as Fulham and Wolves. After the defeat to Chelsea, manager David Wagner said he was happy with how his side played, but there was little to write home about in fairness.
And if their home game against Chelsea was one that even with the advantage of playing in front of their own fans saw them as the relative underdog, then this upcoming fixture can only really offer up a free hit.
Huddersfield have nothing to lose in a sense because no-one expects them to get anything out of this game, however they will need to try and avoid a demoralising defeat to the champions as the repercussions could be sorely felt for the next few weeks as they struggle to get off the mark.
Manchester City will not take this game lightly, but they will know deep down that they may not need to get out of second gear for this one, even if Pep Guardiola does demand high levels of work rate it won’t really be necessary.
The champions have looked ominous in their two displays so far and there is no reason to believe that this one will be any different. All odds point to an easy home win, something that should be delivered come Sunday afternoon.
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