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After breaking out of their winless rut, Manchester City will return home to face a struggling Crystal Palace side with Erlign Haaland still a doubt to feature. The Norwegian has been dealing with a foot injury. He could return for the Club World Cup in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, but even if he doesn't, Pep Guardiola has no shortage of options. In Champions League Micah Hamilton and Oscar Bobb found the back of the net as Guardiola works in some youth players.

Here's our storylines, how you can watch the match and more:

How to watch and odds

  • Date: Saturday, Dec. 16 | Time: 10 a.m. ET
  • Location: Etihad Stadium -- Manchester, England
  • TV: USA  | Live stream: Fubo (Try for free)
  • Odds: Manchester City -600; Draw +600; Crystal Palace +1600

Storylines

Manchester City: Playing such a compressed schedule with the title on the line every game, all eyes are on every move that City makes. While they haven't lost their status as the favorites to win the Premier League yet, if the gap gets much larger than four points before Kevin de Bruyne returns to play, that could change quickly. Crystal Palace are slipping down the league standings and are winless in their last five matches, making all three points critical here.

Crystal Palace: Without the suspended Jordan Ayew, this will be quite a task for Crystal Palace away from home. They'll feel hard done to have dropped all three points to Liverpool last week but a lot of their losses at this stage are self-inflicted. Scoring less than a goal per game, even a stout defense isn't enough to save the team so something will need to change. Facing City isn't a time to try new things, but with Palace slipping closer to the relegation zone, they could be in dire territory soon.

Prediction

City will have another straightforward victory as their run of four games without winning will quickly become a distant memory. Pick: Manchester City 3, Crystal Palace 0