Cardiff City v Manchester City: Preview

Manchester City will be looking to put their defeat in midweek behind them by picking up three points against Cardiff City on Saturday. The Bluebirds have struggled on their return to the Premier League, but are outside of the relegation zone on goal difference before the start of play on Matchday 6.

The Citizens will be looking to keep their unbeaten league run going and keep up with leaders Chelsea at the top.

Previous Matches

Manchester City 1-2 Lyon (Champions League)

Manchester City's Champions League Campaign got off to a disastrous start.

Manchester City were stunned on Wednesday night when French side Lyon defied the odds to claim a 2-1 victory at the Etihad Stadium. Maxwell Cornet and Nabil Fekir both struck before half-time as OL raced into a 2-0 lead.

City responded in the second half, dominating possession and fashioning plenty of chances but Bernardo Silva's strike was all the home side could manage.

Chelsea 4-1 Cardiff City (Premier League)

Cardiff City shipped 4 goals on their way to defeat against Chelsea

Cardiff City racked up another defeat last week against Chelsea, losing 4-1 to The Blues at Stamford Bridge. The home side bossed possession and chance creation, but it was the visitors who took the lead, Sol Bamba firing the Bluebirds into an early lead.

Eden Hazard would score a hat-trick before the final whistle and Willian added a fourth in what was a resounding win for the Premier League leaders. The defeat for Cardiff leaves them outside of the bottom 3 by virtue of goal difference.

Predicted Lineups

Cardiff City

Predicted Cardiff side v Manchester City

Harry Arter should be fit after going off during last weekend's match, while Aron Gunnarsson is set to miss out after suffering another knock in training. That means that the same side that started against Chelsea should also be rolled out against Manchester City.

Manchester City

Predicted Manchester City Lineup v Cardiff

Pep Guardiola will still be without Claudio Bravo and Kevin de Bruyne, the pair still injured and Benjamin Mendy remains a doubt so likely won't be risked on Saturday afternoon. Pep could rotate his side, as he usually does, but which positions he will do so is an impossible job to predict.

The same side which beat Fulham 3-0 at the weekend could make an appearance on Saturday, with the possibility of a few changes such as Mahrez, Stones or Gabriel Jesus starting from the off.

Key Player: Neil Etheridge

Etheridge has been Cardiff's standout player so far this season.

Any hope of Cardiff keep the scoresheet clean will rest with their goalkeeper Neil Etheridge. The Bluebirds stopper has made a number of key saves, getting clean sheets again Huddersfield and Newcastle United, the latter match involving a penalty save.

We've seen it time and time again when a side possessing much more quality than the other is kept out because of a standout goalkeeping performance. Etheridge will have to be on top form again if Cardiff are to pick up any points.

Cardiff to Remain Winless?

Cardiff haven't won in their first 5 games and haven't looked like doing so either.

To stay in the Premier League, you've got to win your home games, and even though this is not a match where the Bluebirds faithful will expect any points, it's an opportunity nevertheless. 10 victories over the course of a season is usually enough, but Cardiff haven't managed any yet, and goals (which they've really struggled to score so far) are obviously the best way to do that. With Burnley and Fulham to face in the coming games, the win will have to come soon.

Prediction: Cardiff City 0-3 Manchester City

Even with Manchester City having a much smaller gap between their previous game, they are the defending champions and Cardiff have a side that resembles the Championship, not the top division.

Nothing short of a miracle will be able to keep Pep's side out, and after losing in midweek, another loss for the Citizens is extremely unlikely. Don't rule out Sergio Aguero getting a hat-trick either. Neil Warnock is well versed in upsetting the odds, but this will probably be a bridge too far.