At 11 pm on March 20th, Beijing time, the 2021-2022 FA Cup quarter-finals will start a focused battle, and Manchester City will face Southampton away.
Battle record
The two teams have met 78 times in all competitions, with Manchester City leading the way with 31 wins, 22 draws and 25 losses. In the FA Cup, the Blue Moon and the Saints played only once, in the fourth round of the 2006-2007 season, Manchester City beat Southampton 3-1 at home.
Aspect 1: Blue Moon vows to break the Saints into the semi-finals for the 4th consecutive season
Manchester City’s form has been a bit of an ups and downs lately, with a rare 0-0 draw in two of their rare encounters. The second leg in the Champions League has no impact on the overall situation, and the league is completely different, as rivals Liverpool have won nine consecutive Premier League victories and are currently only one point away from the Blue Moon. In the FA Cup this weekend, the Blue Moon encountered another hard bone, and that is Southampton. The Saints are currently ranked 10th in the Premier League and are a team that cannot qualify for European competitions, but there is no fear of relegation, so the FA Cup will be a very important event for them. In particular, the quarter-finals are still a decisive event, which undoubtedly greatly increases the possibility of upsets.
The Saints have contributed high-quality performances against Manchester City twice in the Premier League this season. The Blue Moon drew 0-0 at the Etihad in the first leg, while Southampton drew 1-1 against Pep Guardiola’s side at St Mary’s. The Saints have also become the team that has never lost to Manchester City after Tottenham, Crystal Palace and Liverpool this season, which is unacceptable for Guardiola and his disciples. This campaign is a great opportunity for them to beat Southampton to reach the semi-finals. In the past three seasons, the Blue Moon has entered the semi-finals. Except for winning the championship in the 2018-2019 season, Manchester City has lost in the semi-finals in the other two seasons. For the Blue Moon, which is striving for the championship in every event, this campaign must defeat the Saints.
Aspect 2: Sterling & Tintin are expected to play the saint killer
Because it has entered the quarter-finals, and it is a key match to determine the outcome, Guardiola should not send a substitute or a teenager to play in the FA Cup game against Southampton, so the Spaniard is very May send the main force to fight. This season, Manchester City will give full play to the no-forward tactic. In the face of Southampton, which is tough to crack, Tintin must be a key player for the team to rely on. From the past, De Bruyne has often played well against the Saints. In the past 10 games against Southampton, De Bruyne contributed 4 goals and 10 assists. Tintin’s state is also quite good recently. The Manchester City derby made 2 shots and 1 pass to help the team defeat the Red Devils Manchester United. In the last league match against Crystal Palace, De Bruyne’s shot also hit the post and popped out, only a few centimeters away from the goal.
Another player in the Blue Moon team who can be relied on in this game is Sterling. Even if he faces the Saints in two rounds in the new season, this happy football spokesperson does not have much chance to play, but after all, when the Englishman faces Southampton There is always a good performance, and Sterling has been directly involved in 11 goals against the Saints, which is his second best score against a single team in his career, only behind West Ham United who participated in 14 goals. .
Injury report
Southampton: Layanko (injured), McCarthy (injured), Tra (doubtful), Broja (doubtful), Livramento (to be determined)
Manchester City: Dias (injured), Palmer (to be determined), Mendy (suspended)
Predicted starter
Southampton (442): 13-Caballero/2-Walker-Peters, 22-Salisu, 5-Stephens, 15-Perot/32-Walcott, 8-Prowse, 27 – Diallo, 19-Jenepo/10-Adams, 9-Armstrong
Manchester City (433): 31-Edson/2-Walker, 5-Stones, 6-Ake, 27-Cancelo/17-De Bruyne, 25-Fernandinho, 8- Gundogan/26-Mahrez, 9-Jesus, 7-Sterling
(Why is it yellow again)Return to Sohu, see more
Editor:
Statement: The opinions of this article only represent the author himself, Sohu is an information publishing platform, and Sohu only provides information storage space services.