Manchester City v West Brom: Match preview ahead of tonight's Premier League meeting
A look ahead to this weekend's fixture at the Etihad Stadium
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Your support makes all the difference.“That's football for you”, tweeted Vincent Kompany after Manchester City succumbed to a bitter defeat against title rivals Liverpool last weekend. Although the skipper urged his team to regroup, City were evidently out of touch as they dropped two precious points against Sunderland on Wednesday. Manuel Pellegrini refused to give up on his team's chances, but in reality slipping twice in the final stages of the season could seriously hamper City's ambitions.
The Citizens trail six points from top with just a game in hand and a home win against West Brom is a must. They are without Yaya Toure, who suffered an injury at Anfield and will be sidelined for at least a fortnight. David Silva's fitness is still in question after he missed the mid-week encounter with the Black Cats.
Albion's shortcomings in recent weeks were evident in the disappointing draws with Tottenham Hotspur and Cardiff City when the Baggies threw away three-goal leads. They've lost twice, drew twice and won twice in the last six, sitting three points from relegation with a game in hand. James Morrison (ankle) and Swedish defender Jonas Olsson (Achilles) will both be assessed late on the weekend to asses if they would face the Blues while veteran Zoltan Gera (hamstring) is set to miss out.
KICK-OFF
Monday, 8pm
PAST THREE MEETINGS
West Brom 2 (Pantilimon og, Anichebe) 3 Man City (Aguero, Toure), Premier League, December 2013
Man City 1 (Dzeko) 0 West Brom, Premier League, May 2013
West Brom 1 (Long) 2 Man City (Dzeko), Premier League, October 2012
ODDS
Man City to win: 1.22
West Brom to win: 16.5
Draw: 8.2
STATS
Albion's last victory over City in Manchester - a 2-1 win through Darren Moore's late strike - came in the 2002/03 season, when they were relegated.
City have managed only one victory at the Etihad in the last three games.
Sergio Aguero is a prime candidate to hook the ball in on Monday after scoring three times in the past four encounters with the Baggies.
Albion earned two vital away wins in their last four outings - against fellow relegation-threatened sides Swansea and Norwich.
TV: Sky Sports 1
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