Manchester City vs. Liverpool: Preview and betting tips

The pre-Christmas programme will offer the biggest show in football terms on 22 December. Manchester City will challenge Liverpool in the Carabao Cup semi-final. What to expect from the match and what to bet on?

Manchester are sailing through the league quite smoothly, yet they are already five points behind first-placed Arsenal. In the Champions League, they reached the knockout stage from first place, beating Girona 2-0 in December with several juniors in the line-up.

Liverpool, on the other hand, played their dress rehearsal for the second part of the season with most of their stars, beating AC Milan 3-1. Real Madrid await them in the Champions League eighth round, the Reds are only sixth in the league, seven points clear of the Top 4.

Manchester City’s key players

Back in training with the team after the unsuccessful World Cup, Belgian midfielder Kevin de Bruyne has scored three times and assisted 13 goals this season. Sniper Erling Haaland has split the net on an incredible 23 occasions and added three assists.

Liverpool’s key figures

Mohamed Salah cannot be overlooked on the away side, the Egyptian winger netted 14 goals and assisted five times. Summer purchase from Benfica Lisbon Darwin Nunez scored nine times, adding two assists.

The Citizens rely on a goal-scoring attack. They have scored more than once in four of their last five games. They have clearly the best attack of the Premier League, scoring 40 goals, with second top scorer Arsenal having seven fewer.

Even Liverpool started to score late in the year, thanks in part to the improved productivity of Darwin Nunez. He has struck at least twice in four of the last six games. Overall, with 28 shots, he has the fifth best attack among England’s elite.

Considering the fact that the Citizens will be missing several players who are off after the World Cup and considering the mood of Kevin de Bruyne, I think Liverpool will not lose in normal time.