Football betting tips: Premier League
1.5pts Manchester City to win to nil at 7/5 (William Hill, BetVictor)
0.5pt Manchester City to win and under 2.5 goals at 3/1 (Sky Bet)
Aston Villa's incredible winning streak, promptly ended by a 4-1 thrashing at Arsenal on Tuesday, has perhaps allowed MANCHESTER CITY's own run of form to go a little more unnoticed than it otherwise would have.
In all competitions they have won eight straight matches, 12 of their last 14, 15 from 18 and 19 of 24. As you can see, not only is this longstanding, but it's also trending in the right direction; quite the recovery for a side that lost two of their opening three Premier League games.
More recently they been defensive solid, too, with Omari Hutchinson's strike for Nottingham Forest on Saturday the only goal conceded by City in their past five league fixtures.
At 7/5 TO WIN TO NIL Pep Guardiola's side look value to end Sunderland's unbeaten home record.
The hosts have been hit harder than most by AFCON, losing six players to the tournament, and it showed against Leeds last time out with the Whites unfortunate to leave the Stadium of Light with only a point.
Goalscoring hasn't been the forte of Regis Le Bris' men this season - only Wolves and Forest have scored fewer - but it has dropped off further lately, with the Black Cats scoring only three times in their last five matches.
That streak began with a 3-0 defeat at The Etihad and although City breached the UNDER 2.5 GOALS line that day it's worth backing Sunderland to keep things closer on this occasion with the price a generous 3/1 when combined with a MANCHESTER CITY WIN; overs and a City win is a top price of even money.
That loss in Manchester is the only time in Sunderland's last five games that their match hasn't seen two goals or fewer, while 13 of their 19 fixtures (68%) this season have gone unders.
Back-to-back madcap encounters, a 3-2 home win over Leeds and 5-4 victory at Fulham, appear to have been a turning point for Guardiola as all six of City's matches since then have involved under 3.5 goals.
Odds correct at 11:30 GMT (1/1/26)
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