Author: The Nation

Manchester City could be celebrating Premier League title glory by the close of play this weekend, assuming they can get the better of Crystal Palace in today’s  lunchtime’s kick-off.

The hosts will have had five days to recover from their 2-1 defeat at the hands of Leicester City on Monday night, while Man City overcame Paris Saint-Germain by the same score line in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final in midweek.

Crystal Palace looked capable of springing a surprise at the home of top-four contenders Leicester last time out, as a 12th-minute Wilfried Zaha goal propelled Roy Hodgson’s men into the ascendancy after a swift counter-attack.

Despite boasting a 1-0 lead as the half-time whistle blew, Palace soon fell victim to two almost identical goals from Timothy Castagne and Kelechi Iheanacho, as both men produced left-footed thunderbolts to complete the Foxes comeback and leave Palace’s top-10 hopes in jeopardy.

Even though the 13th -placed Eagles are not mathematically safe just yet, they are 11 clear of the drop zone with a game in hand on the bottom three, so their Premier League status is all but assured and Hodgson will simply want his players to give a good account of themselves before the season concludes.

However, Palace can boast just one win from their last seven Premier League matches, and having faced Everton, Chelsea and Leicester in recent weeks, the fixtures do not get any easier after Man City pay a visit, as Arsenal and Liverpool lie in wait in the final two weekends of the campaign.

While the Eagles have managed to keep three clean sheets in their last four home matches, only West Bromwich Albion (33) and Newcastle United (27) have conceded more goals on familiar territory than Palace (25) this season, so City can certainly aspire to replicate Liverpool’s seven-goal showing as they attempt to prise the title off the Reds.

The Citizens must temporarily forget about their continental endeavours, though, as they could wrap up the Premier League title should they win at Palace and Manchester United lose to Liverpool – results which would open up an unassailable 13-point lead at the top with four games remaining.

Despite two home slip-ups to Man United and Leeds United, City’s dominance on the road is showing no signs of letting up, as Guardiola’s men have won their last 10 Premier League away matches, and another victory on their travels here would see them equal the English top-flight record of 11 consecutive away wins.

Guardiola’s side cruised to a 4-0 success over Palace when the sides met at the Etihad in January, and they have strung together a five-game unbeaten run at Selhurst Park since losing 2-1 in the 2014-15 campaign.

Jose Mourinho has admitted he is ‘missing football already’ after finding work just days after his sacking from Tottenham with the Portuguese coach taking up a punditry role with radio station talkSPORT.

The 58-year-old was relieved of his duties by Spurs chief Daniel Levy last week, just days before the club’s appearance in the Carabao Cup final, having overseen an underwhelming campaign.

The north Londoners were dumped out of the Europa League by Dinamo Zagreb under Mourinho’s watch and are unlikely outsiders to clinch a place in the top four, missing out on Champions League football for a second successive season.

Despite pocketing £20m in compensation from Spurs, Mourinho has taken up a new role with talkSPORT after admitting that he ‘misses football already’, more than a week after his dismissal.

Barcelona sounded out the possibility of signing David Alaba but realised he was committed to joining Real Madrid on a free transfer this summer, various sources have told ESPN.

Alaba, 28, is out of contract in June and told Bayern Munich earlier this season of his intention to end his 13-year association with the club.

Barca are close to finalising a move for Manchester City’s Eric Garcia, whose deal also expires this summer, but coach Ronald Koeman would also have supported the arrival of a more experienced defender like Alaba to ease the pressure on Gerard Pique.

President Joan Laporta looked to take advantage of his relationship with Alaba’s agent, Pini Zahavi, to push through a deal but soon threw in the towel when he realised the Austria international already had a loose agreement with Madrid.

Chelsea are prepared to offload Tammy Abraham this summer with West Ham, Aston Villa and Newcastle among a number of clubs interested in the striker, sources have told ESPN.

The 23-year-old has scored 12 goals in all competitions this season but last started a game on Feb. 20.

Thomas Tuchel replaced Frank Lampard as head coach less than a month earlier and although Abraham has struggled with an ankle problem, he has often failed to make the bench even when fit under the new coach.

ESPN reported in March that contract talks between Chelsea and Abraham had stalled with the England international mindful both of his lack of first-team opportunities and also the club’s plans to spend big on a centre-forward this summer.

Abraham will have two years left on his contract at the end of the campaign and sources have told ESPN that Chelsea are willing to offload the striker while they can maximise his value.

Reports have suggested they are prepared to accept £40 million but there is confidence among the interested parties that a deal could be done for less.

Right now, both Manchester United and Liverpool  are at different ends of the spectrum when it comes to UCL qualification.

While the Red Devils only need a couple more wins to secure their spot, Liverpool are in danger of missing out. One more loss could possibly end Jurgen Klopp’s dreams of a top-4 finish. Knowing the circumstances, United would love to serve a bitter dose of reality to their arch-rivals with a big win to permanently dent Liverpool’s Premier League top-four chances and take one step closer to securing their own UEFA Champions League  qualification.

Mathematically, Manchester United can still win the title, but the race is as good as over. The Red Devils are ten points behind leaders Manchester City, and that gap could increase to 13 if they beat Crystal Palace in today’s early game.

With five games left, Liverpool finds themselves four points behind 4th- placed Chelsea. This weekend they face a difficult trip to Old Trafford to face their biggest rivals, and the club just announced a $64 million loss over the last 12 months. Failing to make the Top Four would further impact their revenue and completely change their summer transfer plans.

In this season so far, Man United has only won two games against ‘traditional top-six PL sides’ –both of which came in their visits to Tottenham Hotspur and  Man City recently. At Old Trafford, they haven’t won a game against a ‘big side’ since last season and want to improve that record against Liverpool.

Despite all their issues at Anfield, the Reds have actually been a formidable unit in away games – winning four out of their last five away visits in the league. United have also won their last four home games in the Premier League, so something has got to give here!

After defeating them in the FA Cup clash earlier this season, the Red Devils will be confident of their chances here. But they definitely can’t get a win if they are as wasteful and lethargic as they were in the drab Leeds United draw.

The attackers need to step up their performance levels, which starts with Bruno Fernandes. After an excellent first half of the season, he’s now goalless in the league since the Manchester Derby. Despite getting involved in attacking moves and sneaking into scoring areas, he just can’t seem to get his shots on goal.

Fernandes must pick up his game and put in a dynamic performance as he did as a substitute against Liverpool in the FA Cup game. With his ‘big game flop’ reputation growing, he needs to dominate the attacking third, creates chances with his unpredictable passes and clinically finish whatever chances he gets to get among the goals.

Mason Greenwood also starred against Liverpool in that FA Cup encounter and with three goals in his last four Premiership games, he’s hungry for more. The Englishman just needs to be more decisive with his output in and get himself into central areas to torment Alisson with his lethal shooting.

Marcus Rashford looks tormenting every time he gets hold of possession these days, but he’ll probably operate from the right again tomorrow. While not his most comfortable area, Rashy should look to trouble Andy Robertson with his pace and deliver quality balls into the box to create stuff.

Paul Pogba is primed to operate in that left-wing role again and should look to torment Trent Alexander-Arnold with his movement and link up with the buzzing Luke Shaw, while also creating chances with his deft passes. Fred and Scott McTominay will operate in deeper areas trying to cut down Liverpool’s attacks and kick-start counter-attacks but need to maintain 100% concentration to keep their midfield quiet.

Despite missing Van Dijk and Gomez, Liverpool’s defensive shape has been surprisingly solid in recent weeks – so United has to be ruthless on counter-attacks to trouble them. The Red Devils also need to be wary of their opponents’ threat on the other end and be defensively flawless.

The Premier League top scorer Mo Salah is trying his best to drag Liverpool to a top-four finish and loves a game against United. With his troubling movement and ability to get into unpredictable scoring areas, he can easily score a couple if given enough space in the final third.

Diogo Jota also loves creating things out of nothing and is a real fox in the box, while Roberto Firmino can be a nightmare to deal with because of his proactiveness and creativity. To add to that, Robertson & Alexander-Arnold can be troublesome with his fantastic crosses and set-piece delivery. Not only does United have to be at their best in defending set-pieces, but a sturdy unit against Liverpool’s pace too.

Manchester United are growing increasingly confident that Edinson Cavani will stay at the club for another season following productive talks with manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, sources have told ESPN.

Cavani looked set to leave Old Trafford after just one season after growing disillusioned with life in England.

The 34-year-old is wanted by Boca Juniors, but after Cavani rediscovered his best form with five goals in April, a source close to the Uruguay international has told ESPN he is now leaning towards remaining at United.

Cavani and his representatives are set for talks with the club before the end of the campaign. He remains upset at receiving an FA suspension over a controversial Instagram post, but sources have told ESPN he is also keen to stay in Europe for as long as possible ahead of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

Speaking after the 6-2 win over Roma in the Europa League semifinal first leg on Thursday during which Cavani scored twice, Solskjaer said he wants to convince the former Napoli and Paris Saint-Germain forward to stay.

“He was out for a long time before he came here,” he said. “He’s had injuries, worked hard and showed his quality.”

Kylian Mbappe has picked up a right calf injury and will miss Paris Saint-Germain’s Ligue 1 match against Lens at the Parc des Princes on Saturday.

This means that Mbappe is also doubtful for the second leg of PSG’s Champions League semi-final tie against Manchester City next Wednesday, but Mauricio Pochettino hopes that his star will return to action soon.

“Kylian has a discomfort,” Pochettino admitted during the press conference prior the match against Lens.

“He is a very important player for us and we hope he returns soon.”

Real Madrid will continue to be without Sergio Ramos after he was left out of Zinedine Zidane’s squad to take on Osasuna today.

Despite training with his Real Madrid teammates on Thursday and Friday, Zidane has decided against taking a risk with Ramos who is aiming for a return to the team in the second leg of their Champions League semi-final with Chelsea.

Ramos hasn’t played for Real Madrid since March 13, and it remains to be seen what effect his absence will have on the team, especially Dani Carvajal and Lucas Vazquez being ruled out for the rest of the season.