Manchester City - Brentford predictions and free betting tips [20/02/2024]

On Tuesday 20th February, as part of the rescheduled 18th match of the Premier League, Manchester City will host Brentford on their home turf. The hosts concluded their 11-match winning streak by drawing 1:1 with Chelsea on Saturday evening, just a few hours after the Bees were thrashed by Liverpool with a score of 1:4.

Predicted Line-ups

Manchester City: Ederson; Lewis, Dias, Stones, Ake; Rodri, Nunes; Silva, De Bruyne, Foden; Haaland.
Brentford: Flekken; Ajer, Collins, Mee; Lewis-Potter, Janelt, Jensen, Norgaard, Reguilon; Toney, Wissa.  

Manchester City 

Manchester City is rightfully seen as the favourite to win the title this season. Currently, the Sky Blues sit in 3rd place in the Premier League, with one game in hand and four points adrift of leading Liverpool. The citizens have been thrashing everyone in their way for weeks, as evidenced by their current run of 9 rounds without a defeat in the league (7 wins, 2 draws). However, last weekend, Pep Guardiola's men stumbled against Chelsea (1:1): Raheem Sterling struck the bottom corner of Ederson's goal at the end of the first half, yet relentless city pressure in the second half paid off – Rodri restored parity to the scoreboard.

As disappointing as this result might be, the reigning English champions extended their unbeaten home run in the Premier League to 23 rounds, and their scoring run at the Etihad to 45 bouts. At the end of December, the hosts won the Club World Cup, and in the Champions League made a serious step towards the quarter-finals, beating Copenhagen (1:3).

Brentford

At the moment, Brentford sits 14th in the Premier League and is 6 points clear of the relegation zone. Thomas Frank's charges have every chance of retaining their place in the top-flight division, but they need to maintain vigilance. The Bees have lost eight out of their last ten matches in the national championship, with only two victories. After stunning Wolverhampton with a 0:2 score, the capital side suffered a crushing defeat against Liverpool at the weekend, losing 1:4: Darwin Nunez brought the Merseysiders ahead in the first half, followed by Mohamed Salah, Alexis Mac Allister and Cody Gakpo capitalising on Brentford's defensive failures.

It's worth highlighting that Brentford's away performances haven't been particularly impressive: in 11 matches they collected just 10 points, scored 13 goals, and conceded 16. Having been eliminated from both national cups, the Bees can now focus on the national campaign. 

Head-to-Head

The two sides met just two weeks ago: City walked away successful in London, winning 1:3 thanks to a heroic hat-trick from Phil Foden. 

Match Prediction: Manchester City vs Brentford

A showdown with a fuming City, who just last weekend suffered a disappointing setback, could be a rather daunting outlook for crisis-ridden Brentford. The visitors lost thrice in their last four rounds and failed to hold onto their advantage against the Citizens even on home turf. It's unlikely that the favourites will stumble two times in a row, so my bet is on a home win with a -1.5 handicap. 

Total Prediction 

City will be tearing and throwing after their failed performance against Chelsea, with Holand himself keen to debunk the criticism thrown his way. My forecast – individual TO of the favourites exceeding 2.5 goals. 

Corner Prediction 

Man City will seize the ball from the first minutes and storm the Londoners' goal. Therefore, I confidently bet on individual TO of home corners exceeding 6.5.   

Yellow Card Prediction 

Brentford will be forced to foul regularly in order to hold off the attacking onslaught of the opposition. Thus, I'm placing my bet on a victory for the visitors in yellow cards. 

Score Prediction

I will wager on a precise score of 3:1 in favour of Manchester City.