Manchester City vs Port Vale Predictions

• Man City have shown a ruthless streak against lower league opposition over the past 12 months
• The Citizens won 27 of their last 31 home games in all competitions.
• City scored three or more goals in 16 of those matches.
• Port Vale are averaging just 1.16 goals away from home per League Two game this season.

Man City start their FA Cup defence

Manchester City begin their FA Cup title defence with a plumb looking third round tie at home to League Two outfit Port Vale on Saturday, and Citizens everywhere will expect to see another rout at the Etihad Stadium this weekend.

In terms of their overall performances, City haven’t been their usual free-flowing selves over the past month or so, though their results have still been excellent.

City came out on top in six of their last seven fixtures and in seven of their last nine matches overall, with their narrow defeats to Man Utd and Wolves the only black marks on an otherwise unblemished copybook.

Pep Guardiola will likely make a change or two to his starting XI for City’s meeting with lower-league Port Vale on Saturday evening, though the Catalonian manager usually resists making wholesale shifts in personnel for any competition or opponent.

Guardiola’s preference for keeping his team close to full strength should see League Two mid-table side Port Vale come up against a City eleven with plenty of star quality this weekend, and that should ensure that the Citizens cruise through the contest and into the fourth round of the FA Cup.

City show no mercy to lower league clubs

City have displayed a real merciless streak against teams from the lower reaches of the English football pyramid over the past year, sticking seven and nine goals respectively past Rotherham and Burton Albion in cup competitions over the last 12 months.

Port Vale will be desperate to avoid a similarly humiliating experience, though everything points to Saturday’s fixture being a City procession.

Man City won 27 of their last 31 competitive fixtures at the Etihad, losing just twice on their own patch overall, and they should have little trouble sweeping Port Vale aside in their latest assignment there on Saturday.

Port Vale’s negligible attacking threat

The Valiants have been averaging just 1.16 goals per away game in League Two this term, and with their attacking threat already minimal, we don’t expect them to offer much in forward areas against a City team that are on another level to their usual domestic antagonists.

With that considered, we think the Man City win to nil market represents great value at the available prices for Saturday’s game, while our correct score prediction settles on a 4-0 Citizens victory.

City scored three or more goals in 16 of the aforementioned 31 fixtures at the Etihad Stadium, and having displayed plenty of ruthlessness against lower league opposition before, we’re backing City to run up a meaty final scoreline again.