Palermo will face Manchester City at the Stadio Renzo Barbera on Saturday in a friendly clash between the two clubs. The home side performed well in the Italian Serie B last season, finishing in eighth place to secure playoff football for a second consecutive campaign, but ultimately lost out to Juve Stabia in the quarterfinals of the promotion playoffs.
The Rosanero have enjoyed a strong pre-season campaign, most recently beating French side Annecy 3-2. They are, however, set for their toughest test yet as they take on their heavily stacked sister club.
Manchester City, meanwhile, endured a rather disappointing campaign last season by their own standards as they failed to win any trophies, although they did finish third in the English Premier League. They are set to make their return to action this weekend since their last-16 exit from the FIFA Club World Cup over a month ago and will be looking to mark the occasion with a win.
Following Saturday's game, both sides will return to competitive action, with Palermo scheduled to play Cremonese in the Coppa Italia, while the Cityzens will go away to Wolverhampton Wanderers for their Premier League opener.
Palermo vs Manchester City Head-to-Head and Key Numbers
- Saturday's game will mark the first-ever meeting between Palermo and City.
- The hosts faced two English sides in their last pre-season campaign, beating Leicester City 1-0 and Oxford United 2-0.
- The visitors' last meeting against Italian opposition came back in June when they traded tackles with Juventus in the Club World Cup, winning the group-stage clash 5-2.
- City scored 72 goals in the Premier League last season. Only champions Liverpool (86) scored more.
Palermo vs Manchester City Prediction
Palermo are on a brilliant five-game winning streak in pre-season, scoring an outstanding 22 goals in that period. They are, however, badly mismatched ahead of their next test and can only be expected to give a good account of themselves in front of their home fans.
Pep Guardiola's men will return to action this week after winning five of their final six outings in the previous campaign. They are by far the stronger side and should win this one fairly comfortably, although building fitness will be the Cityzens' main goal.
Prediction: Palermo 1-3 Manchester City
Palermo vs Manchester City Betting Tips
Tip 1 - Result: Manchester City to win
Tip 2 - Goals - Over/under 2.5 - Over 2.5 goals (Four of the hosts' last five matches have produced more than 2.5 goals)
Tip 3 - Both teams to score: YES