Opposition briefing: Everything you need to know about Premier League holders Man City

Match previews

11 Feb 2025

Crystal Palace head to Manchester City on Saturday, 12th April (12:30 BST), and before the trip to the Etihad Stadium, it’s time to get the lowdown on our latest opponents…

Factfile

Manager: Pep Guardiola
Position: 6th
Nickname: The Citizens
Ground: Etihad Stadium
Founded: 1880 (145 years ago)

What’s the story?

Last season, Manchester City became the first side in Premier League history to win four titles in a row. This season, they have broken another record for Pep Guardiola: the first time in his career he has lost four Premier League games in a row.

Seven games without a win in all competitions, including six defeats, was the longest barren run of Guardiola’s career, be it at Barcelona, Bayern Munich or in England.

City have recovered following the turn of the year, helped by January signing Omar Marmoush, and their season could yet end with silverware - they face Nottingham Forest in the other FA Cup semi-final later this month.

Their European dream of a second continental crown ended in the new Champions League play-off round, as Real Madrid progressed 6-3 on aggregate.

But a trip to the Etihad is still not an easy task. They may have had a major drop in standards compared to the last few seasons, but City have only lost three games in the league at home this season.

Tottenham, Manchester United and Liverpool have taken three points on their travels, with only one of those games coming since Christmas. An attack featuring the likes of Marmoush, Erling Haaland and Kevin De Bruyne will always cause teams problems, although Haaland is currently sidelined and De Bruyne recently announced will be leaving the club in the summer.

Guardiola put an end to speculation about his own potential departure by signing a new contract earlier this season, keeping him at the club until the end of next term with the option for a further year. The question, beyond this season, is whether he can rebuild a hugely successful squad that has become used to sitting atop the pile in the Premier League.

The boss

The most decorated manager of the modern generation, Pep Guardiola’s career in European football has been as transformative as it has been successful. His Barcelona side will go down as one of the greatest in the history of the game, with success in Germany with Bayern Munich and a dominant spell in England cementing his legacy.

Boot in both camps

Sun Jihai, alongside Fan Zhiyi, became the first Chinese players to feature in the English leagues when they both arrived in 1998. In 2002, Sun moved to Manchester City - and became something of a cult hero - making more than 150 appearances.

Palace cult hero Michael Hughes who captained the club in the Premier League, also spent four years with City at the start of his career.

For a further look at those to have played for both teams head here.

Record against Palace

At Selhurst Park, the Eagles are without a win since 2015, when Glenn Murray and Jason Puncheon were on the scoresheet, all but ending the City title challenge for that season.

But Palace did earn a 2-2 draw in the reverse fixture back in December, Daniel Muñoz and Maxence Lacroix got the goals that day, while City had Rico Lewis sent off.

Away from home Palace have a better record than most in recent years at Etihad Stadium.

Last season, the Eagles came back from two goals down to earn an excellent draw. This followed on from famous victories in 2021 and 2018, the latter thanks to Andros Townsend's magnificent volley.

The 2018 game saw Palace end a 100% home winning record that season for Pep Guardiola's side, with a Jeffrey Schlupp strike and a Luka Milivojevic penalty ensuring one of the best away days in recent memory.

Did you know?

Manchester City began existence as St Marks, named after the church which had sought to curb gang violence by creating a new pastime for young men in the local area. The team quickly made progress, winning promotion to the First Division in 1899 and the FA Cup in 1904, narrowly missing out on a league and cup double.

However, this golden period was blighted by accusations of financial irregularities and in 1906 the manager Tom Maley was banned from football for life while 17 players were given significant punishment. After the charges were proven, City were forced by the Football Association to auction their players, with many bought by emerging local rivals Manchester United and going on to win the club’s first league title.

Bert Trautmann’s story is a fascinating one, not just for his footballing career. A German paratrooper captured by the British during the Second World War, he refused an offer of repatriation and instead decided to settle in Lancashire after his release.

His performances in goal for local side St Helens drew the attention of Man City, who signed him in 1949 to play in the First Division. Just four years after the war, the signing understandably drew an emotional response and at one point 20,000 people attended a demonstration protesting his involvement.

His stellar performances soon put paid to those discussions, and he went on to play 545 times for the club, ranking fourth on their list of all-time appearance makers. His most famous hour came in the 1956 FA Cup final.

Having been named the Football Writers Association Footballer of the Year that season, he was in goal for the final against Birmingham City. Diving at the feet of a striker, he suffered a serious injury but – with no substitutes – continued to play on, making a series of vital interventions to win Man City the cup.

As he collected his medal, his posture was noticeably crooked. He was taken to hospital for tests, and it was established he had played the final 17 minutes with a broken neck.

Match details

Saturday, 12th April
12:30 BST
Etihad Stadium
Live audio commentary on Palace TV+

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