Bournemouth host Manchester City at Vitality Stadium in a huge clash at opposite ends of the Premier League table.
Depending upon results elsewhere, Bournemouth could begin this match needing victory to climb back out of the relegation zone.
Man City meanwhile could go back top of the table with a win if Arsenal slip up at Leicester in a mid-afternoon kick-off.
Team News
Jordan Zemura is a doubt for Bournemouth after he suffered a knock in their win at Wolves last weekend.
Jefferson Lerma (illness) and Junior Stanislas (knock) are doubts.
Lloyd Kelly (calf), Illia Zabarnyi (ankle), Lewis Cook (knee), Marcus Tavernier (hamstring) and David Brooks (fitness) remain absent.
Man City could welcome Aymeric Laporte and Kevin De Bruyne back into contention after the pair missed City’s 1-1 draw at RB Leipzig in midweek.
John Stones (hamstring) remains absent.
When is Kick-Off?
Bournemouth host Man City at Vitality Stadium on Saturday 25 February at 5:30pm GMT, live on Sky Sports in the UK.
Stat Attack
- Bournemouth have lost all 11 previous Premier League meetings against Man City (L11).
- Man City are yet to lose away at Bournemouth in all competitions (W7, D1).
- City’s Phil Foden has scored in each of his last two appearances against Bournemouth (W2), albeit at home rather than away at Vitality Stadium.
- Dominic Solanke has produced more shots on target than any other Bournemouth player in the league this season (17).
- Jack Grealish has been involved in three of City’s last five league goals away from home, having scored twice and provided one assist.
Prediction
This game will be tough for Bournemouth but Gary O’Neil’s Cherries can take heart from their defensive excellence at Wolves last week, where they dug deep but proved efficient when able to attack with a clinical winner despite Jose Sa denying them a larger victory.
Man City meanwhile simply seem to have hit a rut in terms of their end product because they’ve wasted several chances in their last two matches this past week, which is a worry given how tight the title battle is at present.
Now if Bournemouth can replicate their defensive performance of last week and take their chances, I do think that they could snatch a draw but City seem to relish this fixture so I am going for an away win but their finishing must improve.
Prediction: Bournemouth 0-2 Manchester City
Result: Bournemouth 1-4 Manchester City