In search of a reprieve from their mid-season blues, Premier League champions Manchester City will attempt to reignite their faltering title defence on Saturday when they travel to face Aston Villa.
City have lost five of their last seven league games after their dramatic derby defeat last week, while Villa was coming back to form, only to be let down in the final moments last time out.
But then two early blows from the Forest put paid to Jhon Duran’s equalizer and an incredible save by Emi Martinez deep into the Villans’ finish.
Emery’s men had prior gathered a rolling run of three successive victories over Brentford, Southampton and RB Leipzig in the Champions League but the Carabao Cup defeat now meant they have lost four of their last seven league encounters.
After a revolutionary 2023-24 season championships have become a challenge of strength and depth of the team’s team and the Birmingham’s team has also faced four successive league trails in the away fixtures.
However, they have never lost in their last seven Premier League fixtures at Villa Park and, as you might have guessed, they are currently seventh in the table - meaning that a home win this weekend could even see them leapfrog Manchester City.
On their way to a fourth-place finish, Villa set out their intentions by battering City 1-0 in the same fixture last season, and they will look to do a League double over City for the first time in twenty-eight years this season.
After blowing a one-goal lead in the last moments of last week's local derby, Man City, like their hosts, was defeated in the closing moments of their most recent game, and possibly in even more spectacular ways.
Amad Diallo's brilliant goal in the 90th minute condemned Pep Guardiola's team to a heartbreaking 2-1 loss; they have now lost eight of their previous 11 games. More expensive mistakes allowed Manchester United to escape the Etihad with maximum points.
They have had more shots than any other team in England's top division this season, but their conversion percentage is only 9.9%, which is their lowest since the 2006–07 season. This is just one example of how carelessness has contributed to their unanticipated demise, along with worries about an aging midfield and an injury-plagued defense.
The team's second-leading scorer this season is substitute left-back Josko Gvardiol, behind Erling Haaland, who has also fallen short of his best. Phil Foden, a hero of last season's triumphs, has made more efforts without scoring than any other player in the Premier League this season.
City can not afford any more mistakes if they want to start a historic comeback and get back into the title fight. As a result, they are currently in fifth place, nine points behind leaders Liverpool after one more game.
Jhon Duran will look to maintain his position at the top of Aston Villa's attack on Saturday after making an impression while filling in for Ollie Watkins, who has been sidelined by a minor injury.
With seven goals, Watkins leads the hosts in the league, but Duran scored six against Nottingham Forest, and Unai Emery has been hesitant to combine the two.
With John Stones and Mateo Kovacic returning to the bench for last week's derby disaster, Manchester City's injury list has somewhat decreased over the last two weeks.
Nathan Ake has joined longtime absentees Rodri and Oscar Bobb in the treatment room, but Manuel Akanji may be able to recover from a pelvic issue in time to play, while versatile full-back Rico Lewis is back from suspension.
Although Belgian winger Jeremy Doku is now above of Jack Grealish in Pep Guardiola's hierarchy, Grealish will return to his boyhood club in the hopes of being selected.
