Manchester City v Leeds predictions: Leeds can give leaders another decent test

Free football tips, best bets and analysis for Manchester City v Leeds in the Premier League on Saturday.

Where to watch

BT Sport 1, 12.30pm Saturday

Best bet

Manchester City to win & both teams to score
1pt 13-8 Betfred, BoyleSports

Team news

Manchester City
Pep Guardiola has no new injury problems.

Leeds
Loanee Jack Harrison is ineligible to play against his parent club.

Match preview

Manchester City haven't had many meaningful workouts this season but Leeds gave them one in the autumn and Marcelo Bielsa's Whites are more than capable of landing a blow or two in Saturday's return fixture.

It ended 1-1 at Elland Road in October as Rodrigo cancelled out Raheem Sterling's opener in a game in which Bielsa's boys hit the woodwork and had seven shots on target while City racked up 23 shots in total.

There were 17 corners and it was end-to-end stuff. Kalvin Phillips had said before the game that City could be got at defensively and he was proved right.

Much has changed since then, of course. Or at least it has with City. Leeds, in fairness, looked like a side who would score plenty, concede plenty, win some, lose some and finish somewhere in mid-table – and that's what's going to happen.

Pep Guardiola's team, however, were being written off by many observers having just been walloped 5-2 by Leicester, with the consensus being that City had become something of a liability.

Write-offs tend not to be on course to win quads, though, which shows how much we all knew back then.

What ought to be guaranteed is a similar level of excitement and energy as we had in October, given we know that neither Guardiola nor Bielsa are going to have overnight mindset changes, so it's a game which should produce goals, probably at both ends.

For Leeds to score they need to get the ball, but they will be positive because they always are. And based on the team Guardiola fielded against Dortmund in the Champions League and knowing that he makes changes galore in this hectic schedule, City might not be at their strongest at the back.

Dortmund should be an example to everyone of what's possible with an enterprising outlook. They scored one, had one lucklessly ruled out, created chances and were prepared to be positive with limited possession. And they lost. A City win and both teams to score looks the best bet again.

Certainly betting against the hosts and runaway league leaders doesn't look to make much sense. With so much firepower in their side and on the bench they can pretty much rescue any situation and 27 wins in their last 28 says everything. They are a different animal to the team held at Elland Road five months ago.

That said, their tie with Dortmund is in the balance following their 2-1 win in the home leg and the away leg is on Tuesday. This has got to be a good time to be playing them.

Bielsa's squad is close to full strength. City loanee Jack Harrison cannot play but the Argentinian has good wide options and plenty of flexibility.

They will be feeling mightily relieved after taking seven points from their last three games as a 0-0 draw against Chelsea was followed by gutsy one-goal wins over Fulham and Sheffield United to see them past the 40-point mark.

Key stat

Leeds haven't drawn any of their last 21 away games.

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