Huddersfield Town v Manchester City: Terriers Face Stiff Task in Stopping City Slickers
On the surface, Sunday’s game between these two teams could be deemed as a mis-match as newly promoted Huddersfield Town host Premier League pacesetters, Manchester City at the John Smiths Stadium kick-off – 16:00.
David Wagner’s men currently sit in tenth place in the league standings, but only Swansea and Crystal Palace have scored fewer goals so far, this season. Huddersfield has some difficult fixtures on the horizon – not including City – to contend with, but the Terriers have won their last two home Premier League outings against Manchester United and West Bromwich Albion.
By contrast, Manchester City have only dropped just two points so far in their outstanding league campaign thus far. The Cityzens have already scored 40 goals in 12 matches, and lead bitter rivals, Manchester United by eight points, in what looks to be an almost impossible task for Huddersfield to gain anything from this fixture.
Match Odds
Considering the respective league positions of both clubs, it will be no surprise to see that Manchester City being the bookmakers’ favourites to claim the spoils on Sunday afternoon, however, the one-sidedness of the actual prices is quite staggering.
Pep Guardiola’s side are the prohibitively short-priced favourites at 21/100 with Marathon Bet to beat Huddersfield, while the draw can be taken with several firms including Paddy Power and Betfred at the unusually high odds of 7/1. Ladbrokes and Coral offer the top price of 18/1 in the hope of the West Yorkshire outfit can pull off a major shock and beat City.
The two teams met last season in the FA Cup, with Huddersfield holding an under-strength Manchester City side to a 0-0 draw, but City overpowered their rivals in the replay with a comprehensive 5-1 win. It is very difficult to offer any real confidence in a Huddersfield victory on Sunday afternoon, and Wagner’s men could even find the game difficult to keep the score line close.
Individual Goal Scorers
Perhaps unsurprisingly, the First Goalscorer market is littered with City forwards at the head of the betting. The Sky Blues’ leading Premier League scorers, Gabriel Jesus and Sergio Aguero both with eight goals so far this season can both be backed with SportingBet at the best industry price of 27/10 to hit the net first.
German international winger, Leroy Sane is next in the betting at 9/2 with Sun Bets and Boylesports. Raheem Stirling is an 5/1 chance with Bet365 and Sun Bets, while Bernardo Silva can be taken with 6/1 with Unibet and 888sport. The one who takes my eye is Kevin De Bruyne, who is an outstanding price of 15/2 to strike first with 888sport and Unibet. The generous odds of 23/10 with Marathon Bet on the Belgian star to score at any time must be taken.
Benin international Steve Mounie is the first Huddersfield player on the First Goalscorer list at 14/1 with Boylesports and Betfred, but has not started any game for club or country in over two months. Fellow Town striker Laurent Depoitre could be a slightly more sensible option at 18/1 with Bet365 and Sun Bets, while Aaron Mooy, who joined Huddersfield from Manchester City would love nothing more to score against his former club, with Sport Pesa offering a tempting 28/1.
Other Side Bets
Such is the potency of Manchester City’s attacking talent, it looks likely that Guardiola’s men will already be leading this contest before the half-time break. Ladbrokes and Coral offer 4/6 on a CIty Half-time / Full-time result, that will surely appeal to short priced bettors.
The strongest bet for the match in my view is for Manchester City to beat Huddersfield by more than two goals in the Handicap Market. Stan James are offering 7/5 for this particular bet and it rates as a strong selection for this game.
A Correct Score bet is always worth a nibble at generous odds, and the selection on this occasion is a 4-0 win for Manchester City at 10/1. This price can be obtained Paddy Power.
Only the real romanticists can offer any hope on Huddersfield taking anything in Sunday’s clash, and my reality is that it will be a very long afternoon for the Terriers, as the City juggernaut continues to roll.
Best Bets
- Kevin De Bruyne (Anytime Goalscorer) at 23/10 with Marathon Bet
- 4-0 Manchester City (Correct Score) at 10/1 with Paddy Power
