Manchester City start the defence of their Premier League title with a trip to face West Ham United in one of Sunday’s fixtures.
West Ham United enjoyed a run to the Europa League semi-final last season and secured a seventh placed finish in the Premier League.
Gianluca Scamacca has been the clubs main signing so far, with the 23-year-old striker joining from Italian side Sassuolo.
Manchester City have signed Kevin Phillips from Leeds United; however undoubtably the highlight of their transfer window was the addition of superstar Erling Haaland.
Pep Guardiola guided City to a fourth title in five years last term, securing the title on a dramatic final day, coming from 2-0 down to beat Aston Villa.
2021-22 Premier League: West Ham United 7th, Manchester City 1st
2021-22 Premier League top scorers
West Ham United – Jarrod Bowen 11 goals
Manchester City – Kevin de Bruyne 15 goals
Match history
Manchester City have a very good record against West Ham, last suffering defeat in the league back in 2015, with Diafra Sakho scoring the winner at the Etihad.
The fixture last year saw West Ham take a 2-0 lead through a Jarrod Bowen brace; however City rallied to earn them a point.
Last five Premier League meetings
West Ham United 2 Manchester City 2 – 15/05/22
Manchester City 2 West Ham United 1 – 28/11/21
Manchester City 2 West Ham United 1 – 27/02/21
West Ham United 1 Manchester City 1 – 24/10/20
Manchester City 2 West Ham United 0 – 19/02/20
Team news
There is unlikely to be any news faces in the West Ham XI, with Nayef Aguerd suffering an injury in pre-season.
The club have so far managed to keep a hold of the likes of Declan Rice and Bowen, despite reported interest from Champions League sides.
Phil Foden, Ilkay Gundogan and John Stones all missed the pre-season trip to the United States and that could see the trio miss out on the XI here.
Haaland is expected to start despite a frustrating Community Shield against Liverpool, with fellow new additions Phillips and Julian Alvarez among the substitutes.
Expected starting XI’s
West Ham (4-3-3): Fabianski; Coufal, Dawson, Zouma, Cresswell; Rice, Soucek, Lanzini; Bowen, Antonio, Fornals
Manchester City (4-3-3): Ederson; Walker, Dias, Ake, Cancelo; Rodri, Bernardo, De Bruyne; Mahrez, Haaland, Grealish
Predictions
Result: Manchester City
Not expecting an easy fixture for Manchester City here at all, but they should edge the fixture
Correct Score: 1-2
Should be a narrow success for City, with West Ham causing problems to the Citizens in recent meetings
Anytime Goalscorer: Erling Haaland
The Norwegian missed a few great chances against Liverpool, but he should open his account here
