Our team preview the Premier League's Super Sunday fixture as Manchester City head to Brentford on Sunday afternoon.
Football betting tips: Super Sunday
1pt Man City to win and over 2.5 goals at 13/10 (Boylesports)
1pt Man City to win and both teams to score at 2/1 (General)
0.5pt Nathan Collins to commit 2+ fouls at 10/3 (bet365)
Joe Townsend
This has the potential to be very entertaining.
MANCHESTER CITY have shown glimpses of progress this season and were praised for sitting deep and trying to hold out for a 1-0 win at Arsenal - only to concede a stoppage-time equaliser - with it considered a clear sign of Pep Guardiola's willingness to adapt.
Don't expect this to become the new normal. Eric Dier's stoppage-time penalty for Monaco in midweek to pinch a 2-2 draw, and being breached by a Burnley team who struggled to score past many Championship sides last season shows that defending is not City's strength.
20 goals in nine games shows that attacking is. Only once have they failed to find the net, scoring four at Wolves and putting five past Burnley.
Erling Haaland's form is a big reason for that, scoring 11 times already from an xG total of 8.94. Eight of those goals have come in the Premier League, with no other City player scoring more than once. It's no surprise he is odds-on to add to his tally on Sunday.
Brentford have made a solid start under rookie manager Keith Andrews. Home wins over struggling Aston Villa and Manchester United. Away defeats by Nottingham Forest and Fulham. A dramatic stoppage-time goal to draw at home to Chelsea.
In all competitions they have played eight times, scoring in every game. Both teams have scored in six of them, and five have gone overs. All of their last four league matches have seen both happen, with the most recent three ending 3-1, 3-1 and 2-2.
On their own, those angles are stingily priced but taking MAN CITY TO WIN & BTTS as well as MAN CITY TO WIN & OVER 2.5 GOALS offers two good angles at healthy prices of 2/1 and 13/10 respectively.
This Brentford side aren't as strong as they were under Thomas Frank, but even then they weren't a team City particularly struggled against.
The Bees recorded the double over them in 2022/23 but away from that season it is W5 D1 for Guardiola, with them only denied victory in January by two late goals for the home side.
Score prediction: Brentford 1-3 Man City
Jimmy 'The Punt' Cantrill
If you have been reading Jake’s column, you’ll be familiar with how good Jeremy Doku has been at drawing cards and FOULS this season.
It's bad news for opposition right backs but something that might have flown a little under the radar is it is also bad news for opponent right sided centre backs, whether that is a back three or four.
Jan Paul van Hecke was carded for Brighton and committed one foul, as was Wolves’ Matt Doherty (3 fouls) and Cristian Romero for Tottenham (1 foul).
NATHAN COLLINS should be lining up in that RCB slot for the Bees and he has committed at least one foul in each of his six top flight appearances and five in his last two.
Although the price available for him to commit 1+ fouls is tempting with bet365, given his recent form I am just going to have a smaller stake on him TO COMMIT 2+ FOULS at 10/3.
Score prediction: Brentford 2-4 Man City
Jake Osgathorpe
This really should be a case of attack vs defence, with Brentford quite happy to sit and soak up pressure and City playing the aggressors.
The Bees have faced the second most shots in the league (84) and have the third lowest average possession (40.1%), so we can predict pretty accurately what the flow of the game will be.
Ultimately, this kind of game suits City, who will bombard Brentford's box with crosses and intricate football, but let's not forget about their defensive vulnerabilities in transition.
We should expect a City win, but Brentford can bloody their nose.
Score prediction: Brentford 1-3 Man City
Odds correct at 1030 BST (3/10/25)
More from Sporting Life
- Fixtures, results and live scores
- Expert xG analysis and features
- Transfer news and done deals
- Football and other sports tips
- Download our free iOS and Android app
- Podcasts and video content
Safer gambling
We are committed in our support of safer gambling. Recommended bets are advised to over-18s and we strongly encourage readers to wager only what they can afford to lose.
If you are concerned about your gambling, please call the National Gambling Helpline / GamCare on 0808 8020 133.
Further support and information can be found at begambleaware.org and gamblingtherapy.org.