Bournemouth vs Manchester City: Preview and Predictions for Round 10!

Manchester City heads off to Vitality Stadium to meet Bournemouth in round 10 of the Premier League. So far, City is the unbeaten leader, sitting on top of the standings, and they are in excellent form, even without Ballon d’Or winner Rodri. They might have been eliminated from the EFL Cup. But this does not mean much, as the EFL Cup is the least valuable trophy in this season for Manchester City.

Bournemouth’s performances so far are mixed. The OPTA simulations gave them an expected ranking in the 7th place and they are currently sitting in the 11th spot. Yet, the Cherries got a surprising win over Arsenal and drew against Aston Villa, so things might get back on track.

Bournemouth vs Manchester City Live Stats

Follow real-time stats for Bournemouth vs Manchester City, including the main events and lineups! The data is updated every minute!

Current Form and Standings

Manchester City is currently on top of the Premier League table, one point in front of Liverpool. The Citizens have 23 points and have not lost a single game this season. They drew twice against Newcastle and Arsenal. Their form is excellent, as they enter this duel after three consecutive wins in the Premier League.

Bournemouth currently sits in the 11th spot on the table, with 12 points. They have three wins, losses and draws. The Cherries’ form seem to improve, as they drew against Aston Villa and got an unexpected win against Arsenal.

The Classic Possession Dynamic and Offsides

It is easy to know what to expect from a Manchester City game. They will dominate the possession and control the tempo of the game while Bournemouth will try to catch them off guard and in transition. One thing where the Cherries need to be precise if they want to succeed is to watch their positioning and runs. Bournemouth is caught offside often this season, ranking 3rd for offsides. They were caught outside of play 21 times, and they had three of their goals disallowed after a VAR review. Marcos Sensi is the major culprit here, caught offside four times, followed by Marcus Taverniereng, Antoine Semenyo and Justin Kluivert with three offsides each.

Bournemouth has not kept the ball much this season, being ranked the 4th worst team with a 44.7% percent overall possession. On the other side, Manchester City ranks, you guessed it, first for possession. While Bournemouth will renounce possession, that does not mean they will let Manchester City walk right to their goal. Bournemouth employs an aggressive pressing scheme that makes them the 3rd best team for tackles in the attacking third and midfield third.

The Long Shot Threat

Although not as popular as it used to be, both Manchester City and Bournemouth rely on the long shot. It might surprise you to hear this, but Pep Guardiola’s side is leading the Premier League this season in shots from outside the box, with an average of 8,1 shots taken from outside the box. Usually, Manchester City is renowned for walking with the ball to the goal. But when faced with a stubborn low block, after they push their opponents in their own box, the Citizens do not shy away from shooting from distance.

Things might not always work well for Manchester City in that aspect. Last game against Southampton, after Erling Haaland scored in the 5th minute, the Citizens bombarded the goal. Most of their shots came from outside the box. Yet they failed to score more goals, even though they generated a xG of 2,95. The same story applies to their game against the title rivals Arsenal.

Bournemouth is not far behind in this aspect. While the Citizens may lead the league, Bournemouth ranks 3rd with 5,8 shots taken from distance per game. They are also 3rd in the league for the total number of shots attempted, with 15,6 per game. The Cherries might not fully profit from the shots they take, as they have a xG difference of -4,84. You cannot blame them for not trying.

Bournemouth vs Manchester City Predictions

Manchester City are the clear favourites for coming out on top of this encounter and dominate the game. They have a better squad and a much better track record than Bournemouth. The OPTA Supercomputer gives them a 58% chance to get the win and a 22% chance to draw this one. So here are a few predictions and tips for you to consider:

• Manchester City to Win: Given the Supercomputer results and the fact that Manchester City has won their last 15 consecutive games against Bournemouth, betting on the favourites here looks very tempting.
• Over 2,5 goals or BTTS: Six of their last seven encounters ended in over 2,5 goals, and in five of them, both teams got at least a goal. Only on two occasions, the draw against Newcastle and the win against Southampton, Manchester City scored only one goal.
• Under 4,5 yellow cards: The last 10 consecutive encounters were peaceful. We saw under 4,5 yellow cards between the two teams. Referee Michael Oliver averages 3.4 yellow cards per game in the Premier League.