Yokohama FM vs. Manchester City Preview, Odds, Predictions, Picks

The reigning European champions, Manchester City, meet Yokohama FM in a club-friendly game this Sunday. The hosts are the 2022 J1 League winners and arguably the best team in Japan, and they have a chance to measure their strength with one of the best teams in the past decade. This is the first preseason event for the Sky-Blues, who took their time to rest and recharge batteries following an exhausting season that saw them win the Treble. 

Yokohama FM (+730) has an incredible game against Celtic, the Scottish powerhouse, whom they defeated 6-4. Yes, you’ve read it right, 10 goals. The Japanese champion took the lead early on, went on to the break with a deficit, yet pulled back from behind to win.

Anderson Lopes and Ryo Miyaichi scored a brace each to lift their team to victory in an extremely interesting matchup against the former European champs. It was the first triumph for Yokohama following three events, two losses, and one draw.

The Japanese team plays very efficient events, and four of the past five saw at least four goals, while seven of the recent ten ended like that as well. That is even more obvious at home, where five of the recent six contests have ended with at least five hits.

Manchester City (-330) will begin its preseason with Sunday’s event. The opponent is decent enough for City’s standards, and it would present a good challenge for the inaugural appearance of the new campaign. 

The team had one very important change, and that was Ilkay Gundogan’s departure. The German midfielder left for Barcelona. Instead of him came Mateo Kovacic, a Croatian playmaker who, although isn’t a player of similar characteristics like Gundo, can fit in Guardiola’s plans.

Man City won’t change anything in its approach and tactics. They have a system that works and is extremely lethal. Erling Haaland is the centerpiece of the attack, though Kevin de Bruyne is the heart and soul of the entire unit. The Belgian has been around for quite some time, and he became the unit’s leader right from his arrival.

We don’t have any new updates on the situation in the Japanese team, so it is expected to see them in the best possible lineup. 

City comes with all of its players, and Guardiola can combine and give everyone a chance to play. The English powerhouse will probably open the game with its strongest lineup.

Head to Head

In 2019, the two units played a club-friendly event in which Man City won 1-3. The two clubs are part of the City Football Group Limited, a company that holds several top-tier teams across the globe. That’s probably one of the reasons why they meet in the first place. 

Prediction

The Citizens are way better, and that’s not even a question here. We believe that the UCL champions will post an easy win, but we also believe that the hosts are going to score here as well. They are an extremely offensive-minded unit, which is why we suggest making a combo bet, Man City wins and both teams score.

Pick: City wins, and Both teams score -110