EPL Betting Breakfast: Manchester City vs. Leicester City

If the hectic December schedule in the English Premier League wasn’t enough to challenge even the deepest of clubs, now there are more challenges for many teams. Coronavirus has been busy spreading Christmas cheer to already struggling teams across the EPL, while some clubs even had to fit League cup matches in this week. Leicester City is one of those teams. They had the grim task of facing Liverpool during the week, resulting in a loss on penalty kicks after a hard-fought draw of 3-3. Now, Leicester has the holiday joy of meeting Manchester City on the heels of the taxing match at Anfield. Will Jamie Vardy and his Leicester City teammates have the legs to tangle with the league leaders? We make sense of the English Premier League chaos over the holidays right here on the Betting Breakfast, but you can check out all the EPL odds at Fanduel Sportsbook. 

 Manchester City vs. Leicester City Predictions and Picks

• Manchester City (-320)
• Over 2.5 (-280)

Manchester City (-320) received an early Kris Kringle surprise this week as they were handed a favorable schedule change to help them build their lead in the English Premier League title race. They face Leicester City, who have had their schedule rearranged twice in the past week due to mayhem unleashed by the pandemic. After a war of a game at Anfield versus Liverpool, Brendan Rodgers and his men now have found a sky blue-colored lump of coal in their stocking.   

One bright spot for Leicester is that the players sidelined by positive COVID tests last week are all fit to play against Manchester City. Whether or not the Foxes will have the legs to run with the rested league leaders is another story altogether.   

Not only will Leicester be physically taxed for the yuletide encounter after a short rest period, but they may also be mentally drained. Leicester was dramatically eliminated from the League Cup this week by Liverpool, who tied the match in the 96th minute of play and went on to triumph 5-4 on penalty kicks.  

Mental and physical exhaustion aside, Leicester is encountering one of the hottest teams in Europe. Manchester City is unbeaten in twelve games and has outscored their past three opponents by the combined score of 12-0. They have taken over the lead in the EPL title race with an authoritative stamp.  

With only one win from their past six meetings, there is nothing short of a Christmas miracle required if Leicester finds success this weekend at Etihad. There may be a tendency to justify a position on a Leicester win due to the tight game they gave Liverpool this week. Don’t fall into that trap. Liverpool’s starting eleven consisted of eight teenagers, several of whom received their first-ever Premier League start. Pep Guardiola and his squad should have an easy time of it this weekend, so take Manchester City for the easy win and tap the over 2.5 to add some Christmas pudding to the holiday goal-fest that seems inevitable.