The Etihad Stadium is the setting for another key clash at both ends of the Premier League table tonight. Man City are looking to quickly regain top spot from Arsenal with their ninth top-flight victory in a row, having been knocked back down to second place – but with two games in hand – courtesy of the Gunners’ emphatic return to winning ways against Chelsea last night.
Pep Guardiola’s defending champions have become the overwhelming favourites to successfully retain their title after winning 13 of their last 14 games, including that 4-1 demolition of Arsenal last week, with Erling Haaland now needing just one more goal to break the single-season scoring record in the Premier League. West Ham, meanwhile, had enjoyed a resurgence of late but are now only four points above the relegation zone after back-to-back losses.
The Hammers have not beaten tonight’s opponents in the league since 2015, a run of 14 games, while they have been dreadful against the top six so far this term and David Moyes has crucially never bested Guardiola. Follow Manchester City vs West Ham live below, with analysis from Dom Smith at the Etihad!
Live updates
The early pre-match scene at the Etihad, where plenty of home fans have clamoured to see their City stars off the bus, no doubt keen for at least a fleeting glimpse of the man of the moment…
Moyes: Terrific Haaland is ‘icing on the City cake’
Erling Haaland has been a hot topic of conversation for both managers in the build-up to this game as he prepares to set the new single-season Premier League goal record.
David Moyes was full of praise for a player who notched his first City League goals with a stylish brace at the London Stadium back in August, calling him the “icing on the cake” for Pep Guardiola.
“They have got a great team and I think that’s topped off by Haaland,” Moyes said.
“He’s the icing on the cake for them. I think they’ve got so many good players who can create chances, he’s such a good finisher and if you get him in those right positions he’s capable of scoring.
“I think anybody can come into the Premier League and do well, but as well as that… it’s incredible.
“I think they’ve got a team which can give this player great opportunities.
“He’s a terrific finisher, whether it’s his head or his feet, running in behind or scoring inside the box, he certainly has all the attributes as a really top goalscorer.
“He’s got a team behind him that quite often try to make it easy for him to score.”
Guardiola: Don’t compare Haaland to Messi
Erling Haaland’s incredible exploits have seen him long since earn favourable comparisons to the likes of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, with the prolific Norwegian and Kylian Mbappe widely considered as the next true footballing superstars.
However, Pep Guardiola believes being mentioned alongside Messi in particular is not helpful to the City talisman.
“No-one can compare with Messi. It will not help Erling,” he said.
“Messi is the most complete player I have seen in terms of vision, dribbles, passes, competitiveness, in many things that are difficult.
“Hopefully Erling can be so close (to) Leo, that will be great for us and him, but I don’t help anyone to compare them with the Argentina player.”
Guardiola warns Haaland can ‘get even better’
It feels totally ridiculous that there were times in this City season where many questioned if Erling Haaland was actually a big issue for City in their quest for a fifth title in six years.
Some considered it an overreliance on his goals, others that his involvement forced Pep Guardiola to always play a certain way that did not get the best out of his other galaxy of fleet-footed stars.
Those odd complaints now feel like a distant memory with the boss ominously warning this week that his phenomenal No9, still only 22 years old, can and will get ever better.
“Always I’ve said with Erling it will be tough when you look at what he has done – and if he doesn’t score the goals like he’s scoring now people will say, ‘Oh, he’s in a bad situation’ – but his game can improve a lot,” Guardiola said.
“I wouldn’t say in the box but in the game itself, the movements. I think he has that feeling, ‘Is that enough?’, and I think he has the desire to get better as a player. As long as he has that he can do it.”
Pep added: “I know him a bit and he is so competitive and positive in his mindset. He has this incredible, positive self-confidence. It’s not arrogance.
“It’s self-confidence to say I am going to score and to arrive in his first season and score 50 already and equal the record for two legends in Andy Cole and Alan Shearer.”
Erling Haaland eyes Premier League single-season goal record
Manchester City goal machine Erling Haaland continues to be utterly otherworldly, equalling or breaking records seemingly every single week.
With his penalty at Craven Cottage on Sunday, Haaland became the first top-flight player to reach 50 goals across all competitions in a single season since Tom ‘Pongo’ Waring of Aston Villa last did it all the way back in 1930-31.
And even more incredibly, he needed only 44 matches in which to do it.
34 of those 50 goals in his frankly ridiculous first City campaign have come in the Premier League, and one more tonight would see Haaland break the single-season record in the division currently held jointly by Alan Shearer and Andy Cole.
Man City vs West Ham prediction
It’s now three months since Man City were beaten by anyone, while they have not lost at home since November. Everything points to another routine victory.
West Ham have certainly improved in recent weeks, but they looked incredibly vulnerable against Palace last time out and that does not bode well ahead of a trip to the Etihad.
Man City to win, 3-0.
West Ham team news
West Ham will be without Kurt Zouma tonight after the French defender suffered an ankle injury during Saturday’s seven-goal thriller at Crystal Palace.
Though he avoided a break, Zouma did sustain ligament damage and faces a race to play again in the Premier League this season.
However, he could return if West Ham reach the Europa Conference League final in Prague on June 7.
“We’re still assessing Kurt at the moment, so I wouldn’t want to say just now on a timescale,” David Moyes said on Tuesday.
“It’s ankle ligaments and will be a few weeks.
“But Kurt’s a bit different, he’s incredibly good at getting himself ready and back fit. So we’re hopeful he would be fine if we were to get to the final.”
West Ham’s only other known absentee at present is Gianluca Scamacca, who is recovering from knee surgery.
Predicted West Ham XI: Fabianski; Coufal, Aguerd, Ogbonna, Cresswell; Rice, Soucek; Bowen, Paqueta, Fornals; Antonio.
Man City team news
It remains to be seen if Kevin De Bruyne will play any part for Manchester City tonight.
The Belgian maestro missed Sunday’s 2-1 win at Fulham having picked up an unspecified injury during his superb display against Arsenal last week.
De Bruyne had some involvement at City training on Monday, but did not participate in the full session and remains doubtful for the visit of West Ham.
However, versatile defender Nathan Ake could return tonight after shaking off a hamstring issue.
“Nathan trained yesterday and feels good,” Pep Guardiola told reporters on Tuesday.
“Kevin’s started to move but didn’t train with the team – we have training in a few hours, and we’ll see how they feel.”
City have no fresh injury concerns, meanwhile.
Predicted Man City XI: Ederson; Walker, Dias, Ake; Stones, Rodri; Mahrez, Gundogan, Alvarez, Grealish; Haaland.
How to watch Man City vs West Ham
TV channel: In the UK, tonight’s game will be broadcast live on Sky Sports Main Event, Sky Sports Premier League and Sky Sports Ultra HDR.
Live stream: The Sky Go app will allow subscribers to be able to watch on a live stream across mobile devices, laptops, games consoles, tablets and more.
Welcome to Man City vs West Ham LIVE coverage!
Good afternoon and welcome to the Evening Standard’s live coverage of Manchester City vs West Ham.
It’s another huge game at both ends of the Premier League table tonight, with juggernaut City looking for a ninth consecutive top-flight win that would see them quickly regain top spot from title rivals Arsenal.
Pep Guardiola’s dominant side will be huge favourites to overcome the Hammers, who had enjoyed a domestic resurgence under David Moyes as well as reaching the Europa Conference League semi-finals, but still hover only four points above relegation danger after a pair of back-to-back losses to stunt their momentum.
Kick-off tonight is at 8pm BST, so stay tuned for all the latest team news, match build-up and live updates, with analysis across the evening from Standard Sport’s Dom Smith at the Etihad Stadium.
