Charles Jackson
One victory is enough for Manchester City and Pep Guardiola to achieve what would be one of the greatest achievements in the history of English football. Some of the greatest teams this country has ever seen – Sir Alex Ferguson’s Manchester United, Liverpool in the 1980s, the Arsenal team that pioneered the WM formation – have flourished their mythical status by winning three titles in a row. No one has ever reached the summit four times in a row.
Beat West Ham at home and that’s exactly what City will have done. Tuesday’s dramatic 2-0 victory over Tottenham means the defending champions are in control of their destiny. Win and they will be champions. Anything else opens the door for Arsenal to win the crown – and there will be trophies at both the Emirates and the Etihad – in the end. Here’s how you can watch the game and what you need to know:
Viewing information
- Date: Sunday, May 19 | Time: 11 a.m. ET
- Location: Etihad Stadium – Manchester, United Kingdom
- TELEVISION: NBC | Live broadcast: Fubo (Try for free)
- Chances: City of Manchester -1400; Draw +1100; West Ham +2000
Team News
City of Manchester: Pep Guardiola will be sweating over Kevin De Bruyne’s fitness after the Belgian sprained his ankle shortly after assisting Erling Haaland’s opening goal. Players like Jack Grealish, Julian Alvarez and Jeremy Doku are eminently usable, if quite different, alternatives, but the City manager was at pains to note the value of the experience of those who had to react from two goals down to beat Aston Villa and snatch the title on the final day in 2021-22.
“I think that because they experienced this not long ago, some players are still here and feel it,” said Guardiola. “That’s what I saw perfectly in the reaction in the dressing room after Spurs’ absence a few days ago. They were relieved, they were ‘wow’, but there were no extra celebrations or anything like that. They were happy but incredibly calm.”
City will have to do without the man who started in goal that day, Ederson having ruled out the final day of the league season and the FA Cup final due to a fractured bone in his eye. Stefan Ortega will take his place.
Manchester City’s Possible XI: Ortega; Walker, Stones, Dias, Gvardiol; Rodri. Kovacic; Silva, Álvarez, Foden; Haaland
Westham: With no prospect of moving up or down from ninth in the table, West Ham will play with pride in what will be David Moyes’ last match as head coach. He will at least have a well-stocked squad to choose from: Kalvin Phillips is not eligible to play against his parent club, but he is unlikely to make the kind of impression that would see him play outside the champions even if he were available. Konstantinos Mavropanos and Nayef Aguerd have struggled with injuries in recent weeks, but this could be a game in which veteran centre-back Angelo Ogbonna says goodbye after almost a decade of service.
Speaking about what could happen at the Etihad, Moyes said: “Football is a strange game and you never know what moments you will have to win games. We have to try and take those opportunities when they come. We’re completely focused on ourselves. No we are playing to make Manchester City lose the Premier League or Arsenal win the league, we are playing for West Ham and trying to win the game for our fans.”
Possible West Ham XI: Areola; Coufal, Zouma, Ogbonna, Emerson; Soucek, Alvarez, Ward-Prowse; Kudus, Bowen, Paquetá
Prediction
Nerves may get the better of City, as they often do in big games, but the champions are expected to find a way out in the decisive moments. CHOICE: Manchester City 2, West Ham 0
