REFRESH FOR UPDATES
FULL-TIME: CITY 1 SHEFFIELD 0
WEST BROM 2 FULHAM 2
PALACE 1 WOLVES 0
Frustration at a less-than-convincing scoreline, but City still pick up the three points to go four clear at the top of the table. West Brom were left frustrated once again as Fulham came back to snatch a 2-2 draw and Crystal Palace hauled Wolves into the mire with a 1-0 win. Over to you United and Arsenal...
CITY 1 SHEFFIELD 0
Screams for a penalty as Zinchenko plays the ball off a Sheffield hand, moments after Fleck goes wide at the other end. Ramsdale earns his bonus point with a great stop from Jesus right at the death.
CITY 1 SHEFFIELD 0
Another clash of heads as Aymeric Laporte stumbles into the skull of Oli McBurnie as he stoops for a header. Again, everyone looks to be OK, thankfully. City will know they have been in a tussle today. Around 10 minutes to go.
GOAL! WEST BROM 2 FULHAM 2
That leaky defence hurts West Brom again as Ivan Cavaleiro levels things in a titanic match!
GOAL! PALACE 1 WOLVES 0
Eberechi Eze gives the home side the lead. Pressure building on Wolves... What happened to them?
GOAL! WEST BROM 2 FULHAM 1
Allardyce is on for his first win as West Brom boss as the Baggies have turned it around and now lead Fulham. Matheus Pereira gives the home side the lead.
CITY 1 SHEFFIELD 0
Torres looks for a penalty as he gets a nudge in the box. Nothing doing.
Turgid stuff at Palace v Wolves, but drama at West Brom v Fulham...
CITY 1 SHEFFIELD 0
Foden is carrying a battle scar just above the eyebrow from that head-knock, but he is still digging away as City look for a vital second goal. Remember, Sheffield sucker-punched Manchester United last time out to grab only their second win of the season.
CITY 1 SHEFFIELD 0
A delay as Phil Foden and John Lundstram clash heads - the concussion sub rule comes in next week - but both boys are OK. Jesus goes close again but is denied by the quick reactions of Sheffield keeper Ramsdale.
GOAL! WEST BROM 1 FULHAM 1
Kyle Bartley throws Big Sam Allardyce's side a lifeline in the relegation battle. A clinical finish after Fulham wasted many chances in the first half. Pivotal?
SECOND HALF: CITY 1 SHEFFIELD 0
Second half under way in the three Premier League evening matches. Can Sheffield find a way back in against league leaders City? Also a huge 45 for Fulham and West Brom at the bottom of the standings.
HALF-TIME: CITY 1 SHEFFIELD 0
And it is advantage 1-0 Fulham at West Brom, while Wolves and Palece is zip-zip at the break.
"These games are always tight," say Craig Leader, manager of Crown & Lion, Byblos Basha Heights. "City need to be careful they do not underestimate anyone, especially after the Sheffiled win over United."
CITY 1 SHEFFIELD 0
The visitors show some initiative as Rhian Brewster gets a sight of goal but his shot is directly at goalkeeper Ederson, who mops up the danger.
CITY 1 SHEFFIELD 0
City continue to push but the pace has gone down a bit and the home side are content with second gear and a one-goal advantage as it stands. They will go four points clear with a win - ahead of United v Arsenal later tonight.
As mentioned earlier, Newcastle United celebrated their first Premier League win in 10 games and lifted some pressure off manager Steve Bruce after two goals from Callum Wilson gave them a 2-0 win at Everton. The 16th-placed Magpies put some distance between themselves and the bottom three after Wilson scored his 50th and 51st Premier League goals, leaving them on 22 points from 21 games.
CITY 1 SHEFFIELD 0
Sheffield have ridden the storm relatively well. They are yet to threaten but have steadied at the back, holding City at bay.
CITY 1 SHEFFIELD 0
The visitors try to regroup but they are struggling to get a sniff as City pass the ball around. Still goalless between Palace and Wolves, by the way...
GOAL! WEST BROM 0 FULHAM 1
West Brom's woes go on as Bobby Decordova-Reid puts the visitors in front
GOAL! CITY 1 SHEFFIELD 0
Well, the early signs say no as Gabriel Jesus opens the scoring after only eight minutes. Lovely ball in From Ferran Torres and the Brazilian steadies himself to tap home. City are purring.
CITY 0 SHEFFIELD 0
We are off at the Etihad. City have - as I said - opted to rest a few players due to a hectic schedule coming up as they contend for four trophies. Can Sheffield capitalise?
TEAMS
Man City: Ederson, Walker, Laporte, Dias, Zinchenko, Fernandinho, Gundogan, Bernardo Silva, Torres, Foden, Gabriel Jesus. Subs: Stones, Sterling, Steffen, Rodri, Mendy, Mahrez, Joao Cancelo, Garcia, Bernabe.
Sheff Utd: Ramsdale, Baldock, Basham, Egan, Ampadu, Burke, Lundstram, Fleck, Norwood, Bogle, Brewster. Subs: McBurnie, Sharp, Mousset, Lowe, Jagielka, McGoldrick, Foderingham, Bryan, Gordon.
Referee: David Coote
But today’s focus will be the David and Goliath clash at the Etihad as Guardiola’s City look to stamp their authority on the Premier League title race with their 12th consecutive win in all competitions. Sheffield may take hope from a slightly weakened City line-up as Pep knows they have five games out of the nest six on the road.
Palace and Wolves are by no means clear of getting dragged into a relegation dogfight, but the main match today will be top against bottom as Manchester City look to stretch their lead at the top of the table. However, Sheffield stunned title hopefuls Manchester United last time out with a 2-1 win on Wednesday and they will be out for a Manc double to haul themselves closer to safety after an absolutely horrendous first half of the season left them adrift at the foot of the table.
Speaking of the dreaded drop, we have plenty of protagonists in action today.
Fixtures
Everton 0 Newcastle 2
Crystal Palace v Wolves, 7pm
Manchester City v Sheffield United, 7pm
West Brom v Fulham, 7pm
Arsenal v Manchester United, 9.30pm
Southampton v Aston Villa, midnight
Newcastle fans with have a spring in their step as they defeated Everton 2-0 in the early game, much to the displeasure of Toffees coach Carlo Ancelotti. Is it just a stay of execution for Magpies boss Steve Bruce, or are they really gonna turn things around?
The one thing in the Toon Army’s favour is the number of teams hovering above or already in the relegation zone. It could be a vital three points at Goodison come May. Pretty dire from the home side as Callum Wilson’s double was no fluke, and he was an inch away from a hat-trick, only to be denied by the woodwork.
Hello and welcome to the live coverage of the relentless English Premier League. Not for the first time, I forgot to update my Fantast Football team as I can’t keep up with the games. Hey-ho.
