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2022/23 English Premier League
Matchday 27
Crystal Palace v Manchester City
Selhurst Park
London, England
Saturday, 11 March 2023
Kick-off is at 19h30
Manchester City will look to stay in touch with the Premier League leaders when they make the journey to the capital to face Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park on Saturday, March 11.
The Citizens beat Newcastle 2-0 at the Etihad Stadium last Saturday to maintain the five-point gap to Arsenal in second place after the Gunners battled back from two goals down to claim a dramatic 3-2 win over Bournemouth.
Manchester United failed to keep pace with the top two after they suffered a humiliating 7-0 defeat at Liverpool last Sunday, which left them nine points adrift of their neighbours in third position with a game in hand.
Tottenham also missed out on the chance to cement their place in the top four after going down 1-0 at Wolves as the Reds closed to within three points of Spurs in fifth spot.
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While City are unbeaten in their last five games, Palace have struggled of late, with a 1-0 loss at Aston Villa last Saturday extending their winless run to nine matches.
The Eagles had drawn their previous three encounters and they sit 12th in the standings on 27 points, five clear of the relegation zone and seven shy of the top 10.
Villa (11th) also opened up a seven point gap on Patrick Vieira's team, who are seeking only their second win since the campaign resumed after the World Cup break.
Wilfried Zaha made his comeback against the Villans after missing the previous four games through injury and Vieira will be hoping his talisman can rediscover the form that saw him plunder 14 goals last term. The Ivory Coast international is Palace's top scorer this season with six goals but hasn't found the back of the net in his last eight outings.
Phil Foden is in sparkling form for City and his 15th-minute opener against the Magpies saw him become the club's youngest player to reach 50 league goals at the age of 22. The England international has now notched nine goals in each of his last three seasons in the top flight and is on course to hit double figures for the first time in his career.
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In team news, Cheick Doucoure serves a one-match suspension for his dismissal against Villa, while Sam Johnstone (calf) and Nathan Ferguson are also ruled out for the hosts. Foden is a slight doubt for City after hurting his foot against the Tynesiders.
Vieira felt their game-plan almost worked at Villa Park but admits there are certain aspects that can be improved upon for the visit of the defending champions.
"With the first chances we created and with Wilfried and the goal he scored (which was ruled out for offside), that was our plan: to expose the back-four," the Frenchman said.
"Wilfried away from home playing in that position has been really good for us. It was our plan to stretch their back-four because we knew centrally it would be difficult to find the space. This is what we tried to do.
"There were a couple of offsides, the timing of the runs were not the best or the timing of passing the ball was not the best. It was a question of timing that didn't allow us to create those opportunities."
Guardiola believes the three fixtures leading up to the March international break will be vital to City's challenge for trophies on three fronts.
"Before the international break then we have three games in six days in three different competitions and they will define our season," the Spaniard said. "Palace, Leipzig and Burnley will define our season and what we are able to do for the rest of the season."
Head-to-Head (Last Five Premier League Meetings)
Matches - 5
Palace - 1
Man City - 3
Draws - 1
Matchday 27 fixtures:
Saturday, March 11
12h30: Bournemouth v Liverpool
15h00: Everton v Brentford
15h00: Leeds United v Brighton & Hove Albion
15h00: Leicester City v Chelsea
15h00: Tottenham Hotspur v Nottingham Forest
17h30: Crystal Palace v Manchester City
Sunday, March 12
14h00: Fulham v Arsenal
14h00: Manchester United v Southampton
14h00: West Ham United v Aston Villa
16h30: Newcastle United v Wolverhampton Wanderers
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