Our prediction for this Premier League match:
Manchester City will be aiming to stay in the title race when they take on Bournemouth on Matchday 26. The Citizens failed to impress in a 1-1 draw with Chelsea at the weekend, but they are still seen as hot favourites to win Saturday’s encounter. Bernardo Silva is pushing for a recall to the starting XI, while both Josko Guardiol and Jack Grealish remain in the treatment room.
The Cherries, on the other hand, failed to win the previous six league matches. As Bournemouth have been struggling at the back of late, we believe that there is a big value in betting on Pep Guardiola’s troops. Philip Billing has yet to serve his ban, while fellow midfielder Romain Faivre should recover in time to face the title holders. All James Hill, Max Aarons, Tyler Adams, and Ryan Fredericks are out of contention with injuries. You should know that Man City are eyeing their 15th consecutive win over Bournemouth in all competitions.
Highlighted Player (Nathan Ake):
Ake is a professional footballer who plays for the Dutch National Team and AFC Bournemouth in the Premier League. The versatile defender who was born on the 18th of February, 1995, started his youth career in 2003 with local club ADO Den Haag. He then moved to Feyenoord in 2007 before joining Chelsea's youth academy four years later.
Ake made his first professional appearance at the age of 17, playing for the Blues in a 0-1 away victory against Norwich on the 26th of December, 2012. Barring a few starts and substitute appearances, Ake spent his next few years at Chelsea mostly in the reserves before being sent out on a one month loan to Reading in 2015. Upon his return, he immediately joined Watford on a season-long loan where his displays earned him the Watford's young player of the season award. Another successful loan spell at Bournemouth succeeded his time at Watford before Chelsea recalled him in January 2017.
At the start of the 17/18 season, the 24-year-old rejoined his current club Bournemouth permanently on a five-year contract worth 20 million pounds. On the International stage, Ake has represented the Netherlands at every youth level and has even captained the under-17 and under-19 sides. He made his first senior appearance on the 31st of May, 2017, featuring in Hollands 2-1 friendly win over Morocco.
Highlighted Team (Bournemouth):
Bournemouth are a professional football club that was formed back in 1890. The Cherries secured promotion to the Premier League in the 2015/2016 season, with the team making it to the English top flight for the first time ever.
Bournemouth play their home games at Dean Court and the capacity of the stadium is 11,469.
The Cherries enjoyed a very successful season on their Premier League debut, with the team beating the likes of Chelsea and Manchester United in the national championship. Glenn Murray scored the winner for Bournemouth in the 1-0 win over the capital club at Stamford Bridge and that is probably the greatest victory in the club’s history.
Bournemouth have been participating in the FA Cup since 1913, but they have yet to win the trophy in the prestigious competition. It has to be noted that the club’s original name Boscombe Athletic Football Club was changed to Bournemouth back in 1923 as the club owners wanted the Cherries to be more representative of the district.