MANCHESTER CITY must get themselves up off the canvas in short order when they play host to Newcastle United in the Premier League on Sunday.
The Citizens completely hit the self-destruct button in their all-important Champions League semi-final second leg at Real Madrid on Wednesday night, shipping three goals from the 90th minute onwards to go down 3-1 after extra-time.
That dramatic late collapse in the Spanish capital would have been a particularly bitter pill to swallow and it also now means that retaining the Premier League represents City's sole chance of landing silverware this season.
With the title race heading towards a dramatic climax, Pep Guardiola is now tasked with lifting his players' spirits ahead of Sunday's visit from Newcastle.
Remarkably, the Magpies were five points adrift of safety when they appointed Eddie Howe as manager back in November, yet they are now firmly in the mix for a top-half finish.
After narrowly losing 1-0 to Liverpool last weekend, Newcastle will now look to do the Reds a massive favour on Sunday when they come against a Manchester City side reeling from their loss last time out.
Outright Betting
Manchester City, who have won 20 of their last 24 Premier League matches, head into this match as red-hot 2/11 (SBK) favourites.
Newcastle have lost on three of their last four top-flight road trips and the bookmakers odds fully expect that trend to continue with an away win trading at a towering 18/1 (SBK) while the draw is priced up at 36/5 (SBK).
Betting Angles
You won't get rich backing Man City at the aforementioned odds so I'll head to the Bet Builder market and merge Man City to win, under five match goals and over zero Newcastle cards at 4/5 with Bet 365.
Pep Guardiola and Co have no time to feel sorry for themselves and must pick themselves up off the floor quickly as they gear up for the final four rounds of fixtures in the Premier League.
Sure, Newcastle could feel the wrath of a wounded Blue Moon beast here, but it's worth noting that 19 of City's 26 top-flight triumphs this term to date have gone under the 4.5 goal barrier.
What's more, the Citizens will likely have one eye on their trip to Wolves on Wednesday night, so supporting a Man City success in a game that features fewer than five match goals makes appeal.
Newcastle, on the other hand, have tightened up at the back under Eddie Howe's tutorship so they should be able to keep this respectable, and they may even deploy the dark arts in an attempt to tame their top-heavy opponents.
The Toon have totted up at least one card in 34 of their 35 Premier League outings this season and with that in mind, I'm happy to round off the 4/5 (Bet 365) Bet Builder with a minimum of one Newcastle booking.
One Man City player who could be worthy of some interest to have his name taken is João Cancelo who can be backed at an appetising 11/2 with Bet 365.
The Portuguese full-back has picked up 10 cards across all competitions this season and it wouldn't come as a surprise if he was to add that tally here in the event that his direct opponent is Magpies speed merchant Allan Saint-Maximin.
This English Premier League match between Manchester City and Newcastle United will be played on May 8, 2022 and kick off at 16:30. Check below for our tipsters best Manchester City vs Newcastle United prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.