Bournemouth are still very much in the hunt for a top five finish and a shot at the Champions League next season. With Liverpool or Aston Villa likely to drop points in the coming rounds the Cherries have a real chance to close the gap and keep their European dream alive. The team has been grinding out results lately after a long spell without wins and fans are hoping the momentum carries into this huge home clash against Manchester City.
Team Form
Bournemouth head into the match on the back of a mixed run that saw them pick up points in eight of their last fifteen outings mostly through draws. Lately though they have turned things around with three wins from their last five games showing better attacking intent and solid defending at the Vitality Stadium. On the other side Manchester City remain in top gear with eight wins and just one draw from their previous nine fixtures and their attack has fired at least twice in almost every game during this stretch.
- Bournemouth unbeaten in four of last five with improved goal threat
- Manchester City scoring freely and keeping clean sheets in recent home wins
- Both sides carrying long unbeaten sequences into the fixture
Tactical Analysis
Manchester City are expected to dominate possession and push high up the pitch knowing they cannot afford anything less than three points in their title chase behind Arsenal. Bournemouth will likely sit deep early on looking to hit on the counter and exploit any spaces left by the visitors aggressive style. The Cherries have shown they can score against big sides at home and may try to press in midfield to disrupt City’s rhythm while relying on their wingers for quick transitions. City on the other hand have the squad depth to rotate and maintain intensity making them tough to break down even on the road.
- Bournemouth strengths include home resilience and recent attacking spark
- City weaknesses are rare but include occasional slow starts away from home
- Key battles expected in midfield where both teams like to control tempo
Betting Proposal
Given the attacking quality on show and Bournemouth’s need to push forward this looks set to be an open game with plenty of goalmouth action. Both teams have been involved in high scoring encounters lately and the visitors have averaged well over two goals per game in their current run. The most appealing angle is to back a lively affair where the total goals go over the line comfortably.
With Bournemouth likely to throw caution to the wind at home and City needing a statement win the match should produce at least four goals in total. Total over 3.5 goals at odds of 2.12 stands out as the strongest value in the betting markets for this Premier League clash.
