Victory in west London would take Manchester City to within two points of leaders Arsenal, but Pep Guardiola’s side have yet to hit top gear, struggling to find consistency, particularly away from home.
While they thrashed Wolves 4-0 at Molineux on the opening weekend, they have claimed just one win in five top-flight matches on the road since then, losing each of the past two against Aston Villa and Newcastle.
City have been heavily dependent on Erling Haaland’s goals this season but the prolific Norwegian has failed to net in each of his three appearances since the international break (including two starts).
It was instead Phil Foden who stepped up as the matchwinner against Leeds last time out, with the Englishman netting twice, including the decisive streak in injury-time.
Foden only scored seven Premier League goals last season, a substantial drop from his haul of 19 in 2023-24. Despite his double at the weekend, the 25-year-old has often played a slightly deeper, more creative role in the current campaign.
Guardiola has described Foden as “one of the best players we have in small spaces” and is increasingly relying on his ability to take the ball under pressure, evade the press and deliver incisive passes to team-mates in more advanced positions.
His touch map illustrates this trend. Foden has had 34% of his open-play touches in this season’s Premier League in his own half, up from 22% last term.
It is a similar story in terms of touches in the central area and so-called half-spaces just outside the box – where Foden might normally be expected to be most influential. He had 33% of his touches in those zones last term, with that figure dropping to 22% in 2025-26.
