Southampton vs Manchester City betting tips: Carabao Cup quarter-final preview, predictions and odds

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Match preview

Will Carabao Cup kings Manchester City move one step closer to capturing this trophy once again?

The Sky Blues are eight-times winners of this competition, with six of these, unsurprisingly, coming in the last decade.

Under Pep Guardiola, they claimed four consecutive League Cups, before finally being dethroned by West Ham last season.

So far this year, the Citizens have already seen off both Chelsea and Liverpool, and are favourites once again to be celebrating silverware at Wembley on 26 February.

At the weekend, Guardiola’s team smashed Chelsea in the FA Cup, easily running out 4-0 winners; Riyāḍ Maḥrez, Julián Álvarez and Phil Foden all on target.

Here, Man City are massive favourites to reach an 11th domestic cup semi-final in eight seasons.

The Saints have lost six league games on the spin, most recently beaten by fellow-strugglers Nottingham Forest at home a week ago.

Nathan Jones’ side visit Goodison Park on Saturday, in a massive game, with this far from ideal preparation.

Southampton did at least claim a morale-boosting victory in the FA Cup on Saturday, coming from behind to beat Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park.

James Ward-Prowse’s wide free-kick evading everybody, before Adam Armstrong robbed the goalkeeper and walked in the winner.

In this competition, the 2017 finalists have so far ousted Cambridge United, Sheffield Wednesday and Lincoln City, but it goes without saying that this’ll be an exponentially tougher challenge.

Manchester City scored four in both of their last two meetings with Southampton, with this one likely to go a similar way.

Southampton team news

The Saints are without Armel Bella-Kotchap and Stuart Armstrong who are both injured.

Gavin Bazunu, Roméo Lavia, Juan Larios and Samuel Edozie could all face the club they left in the summer.

Meanwhile, Mislav Oršić could make his debut after joining for £6 million from GNK Dinamo Zagreb last week.

Predicted XI (5-4-1): Bazunu; Walker-Peters, Lyanco, Ćaleta-Car, Salisu, Perraud; Lavia, Ward-Prowse, Edozie, Aribo; Adams.

Manchester City team news

Pep Guardiola may be tempted to rest his superstar players, specifically Kevin De Bruyne and Erling Braut Håland, ahead of Saturday’s Manchester derby.

He confirmed last week that Kalvin Phillips, who came on at the hour mark on Sunday, would start this tie.

Impressive teenaged right-back Rico Lewis is set to return, as are Jack Grealish and İlkay Gündoğan.

Predicted XI (4-3-3): Ortega; Lewis, Stones, Aké, Gómez; Phillips, Gündoğan, Foden; Maḥrez, Grealish, Álvarez.

Southampton vs Manchester City: Head to head statistics

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