With the Premier League heading towards the penultimate week of the season, there is still a few mini objectives to fulfil for both the sides that will face off at the Liberty Stadium on Sunday when hosts Swansea City take on Manchester City. For Garry Monk, it’s been a solid season right from the start which could now go up a notch and snatch them one of the Europa League spots going by current form as the Swans have gone on accrue 16 points from the last 7 games with only one defeat and a formidable record at home where they have managed to beat the likes of Arsenal and Manchester United. Having sold their best attacking option in Wilfried Bony to Sunday’s opponents, Swansea were expected to struggle to pick up points but Garry Monk has defied the odds and could now lead his Swans to a 6th place finish pipping Southampton, if they could maintain their dream run of form in these next two games.
For Manuel Pellegrini and Manchester City, it’s a case of finishing as high as possible which is second in the table, after surrendering their title to Chelsea after a poor run of results in the early months of 2015. The Blues look well on course to a second placed finish after an upturn of form since the derby disaster at Old Trafford winning four games on the spin with Sergio Aguero scoring in the last five games in the league epitomizing City’s revival. They will make the trip to Wales on the back of a 6-0 rout at home against Queen’s Park Rangers looking to stage a similar clinical performance in front of goal to provide themselves the momentum and confidence to take into the next season.
Team News
Swansea have concerns over Angel Rangel, Wayne Routledge, Kyle Naughton and Tom Carroll.
Manuel Pellegrini named an unchanged side for the visit of QPR last weekend but could be without Samir Nasri on Sunday as he faces a fitness test.
Interesting Numbers
- Bafetimbi Gomis has bagged 4 goals in his last 4 Premier League appearances.
- Man City’s substitutes have been involved in more Premier League goals than any other side this season (18 – nine goals, nine assists).
- Garry Monk has the best win percentage of any Swansea City manager in the Premier League (42 per cent).
- The Citizens have lost four of their last five away games, though they did win their most recent game against Tottenham.
Key Men
Bafetimbi Gomis – Swansea City
Gomis became Swansea City’s first choice striker after the sale of Wilfried Bony to Manchester City during the January window and the 29-year old is starting to show why he can be trusted with leading the line for Swansea in the future, with the vital winner he scored at the Emirates, a perfect header, arrowing into the goal, very similar to the one he netted against Arsenal at home in the dying embers of the match. He’s scored 6 times for Garry Monk’s men this campaign in 29 appearances (16 starts) whilst he has lasted the full 90 minutes in only 9 of those games. Injuries have hampered his rhythm to some extent, but given a run of games, Bafetimbi Gomis can certainly add a few more goals to his tally, which is what he will look to do in these next two important games for Swansea City aiming for a Europa League berth.
David Silva – Manchester City
With 12 goals and 5 assists, it’s safe to say the Spaniard has had a very good season, if not vintage. David Silva has also managed to create an astonishing 87 chances in 30 appearances which is unreal by all accounts, all the more so when the pressure has been on him to deliver week in week out with Yaya Toure failing to live up to the standards he set for himself the previous season. His passing has been impeccable as usual as has his shot accuracy been almost throughout the season with about 60% of his shots bang on goal only goes to highlight why he’s still one of the best midfielders in the league and a vital cog in this Man City side managed by Pellegrini. With Aguero finding his goal-scoring boots again looking to score in his 6th Barclays Premier League game in succession, the 29-year old will prove just as important to Manchester City vying to finish the season as strong as they can.
Prediction
When two in-form teams face each other, more often than not, cream comes out on top. A narrow win for the visitors, I’d reckon.
Swansea City 1-2 Manchester City
