Defending Premier League Champions Manchester City open up their account for the 2022/23 season with a match against West Ham at the London Stadium this weekend.
The Blues come in to their season opener off the back of a fairly successful pre-season, registering consecutive wins during their tour of the United States, before falling to a disappointing defeat to Liverpool in the FA Community Shield.
Despite City's performance during the latter fixture leaving more to be desired, the highlight of the match was Julian Alvarez’s first goal in a Sky Blue shirt, drawing the game level in the 70th minute.
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Erling Haaland tried his best across the 90 minutes, consistently getting into the final third, but left the game with nothing to show for it aside from a point-blank miss which left the Norwegian star smirking in disbelief.
A final point of note were the debuts of Phil Foden and Ilkay Gundogan for the season, with the pair absent from the team’s tour of the United States. Both men featured as substitutes, with Foden playing a key role in Alvarez’s equalising goal.
The Hammers spent most of their pre-season in the United Kingdom, taking on teams from the Championship, League One, and Scottish Premiership, while also travelling to Europe for two games.
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These were perfect opportunities to adapt new recruits Nayef Aguerd, Alphonse Areola, Patrick Kelly, and Flynn Downes into head coach David Moyes’ system.
The last time the two sides met was in the penultimate match of the 2021/22 season, when Manchester City were looking to go six points clear of Liverpool in the Premier League table.
However, the Blues went down two goals in the first-half, before making an impressive and dramatic comeback in the second half.
Riyad Mahrez did however have the chance to put Manchester City ahead late in the game, but missed a crucial penalty in the 85th minute which set up the events that took place a week later against Aston Villa on the final day of the season.
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When?
West Ham United and Manchester City will kick-off their respective seasons at 16:30 (UK Time) on Sunday 7th August.
Where?
The match will take place at West Ham’s London Stadium.
How to Watch?
For viewers in the United Kingdom, you can catch the season opener on Sky Sports, or listen to the match on BBC Radio 5 Live.
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For those in the United States, you can watch the match on Peacock or listen on SiriusXM FC starting at 11:30 A.M. EST.
For all other details including TV channels, live stream links, and global kick-off times, check out our relevant edition of How To Watch!
Topics: West Ham United, Manchester City, Premier League, Football
Declan Harris