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Manchester City may have to respond to the Manchester United charge once more with three points in their next game against Sunderland on Sunday in order to hold on to top spot in 2012.
City play the day after their great rivals and may go into the new year in second place having occupied top spot for the majority of the season so far as United continue to pile on the pressure.
Having looked invincible a few chinks have appeared in Roberto Mancini’s side’s armour, with a defeat against Chelsea earlier this month followed by the 0-0 draw against West Brom last week that has allowed United to overhaul a five point deficit.
That game marked the first time this season that the Citizens had failed to score in a game while Manchester United were putting five past Wigan to close the difference in goal difference between the two sides – a factor which may be crucial in what is shaping up to be the tightest title race for years.
Now they must secure all three points against a resurgent Sunderland side in order to ensure they don’t fall back into second and hand United the advantage.
Martin O’Neill meanwhile has whipped Sunderland into shape ever since joining the club earlier this month, and has been able to help the club start accumulating the points that have lifted them above the drop zone.
The Black Cats now sit in 15th after picking up two ins in their last four games, with their latest point coming courtesy of a 1-1 draw with Everton on Boxing Day.
Unfortunately they will go into the tough game with a long injury list, with a host of first team players expected to miss out.
Kieran Richardson was forced to sit out training this week after suffering with an illness and looks set to miss the game, while Phil Bardsely and Titus Bramble are also both doubts having picked up knocks in the Boxing Day fixture against Everton.
That is in stark contrast to the injury-free squad Mancini takes with him to the Stadium of Light, with Carlos Tevez the only player unavailable to the Italian for the game.
In particular Mancini will be pleased that he has a full complement of full-backs to choose from, with Micah Richards returning to action having recovered from a calf strain, while Aleksander Kolarov returns to action after six weeks out.
Match Winner
The Citizens are on the verge of going the whole year unbeaten at the Etihad Stadium, and are certainly favourites with the bookmakers to achieve that feat.
City are 1.57 (4/7) favourites with Paddy Power to get the win while Sunderland are 7.00 (6/1) with BlueSQ to upset the odds.
The draw is placed at 4.33 (10/3) with BoyleSports.
First Goalscorer
After firing their first blank of the season against West Brom, Manchester City’s forwards will be desperate to get back to winning ways with plenty of goals on new year’s day.
Sergio Aguero is the favourite to open the scoring at 5.00 (4/1) with Bet365, while he is closely followed by Mario Balotelli at 5.50 (9/2) with the same bookmaker.
For Sunderland, Nicklas Bendtner leads the way at 11.00 (10/1) with BlueSQ, while Stephane Sessegnon is a decent bet to get proceedings underway at 13.00 (12/1) with StanJames.
Recommended Bets
First Goalscorer: Mario Balotelli, 5.50 (9/2) Bet365
Correct score: Manchester City 2-0, 8.00 (7/1) Coral
