By Jake Glavies
Manchester City will be in prime position to leap into fourth place in the Premier League Saturday, as Wayne Bridge and Joleon Lescott will make their return to the line-up during the trip to Hull City.
Both players have been out of action for around two months after suffering knee injuries just one week apart. Bridge went down Dec. 5 against Chelsea and Lescott at Bolton Dec. 12. With the defenders sidelined, City won five of its last seven matches, but suffered key losses against Tottenham, 3-0, and Everton, 2-0. While Lescott will be on the bench to start the match, Bridge will be in the starting line-up. He and fellow defender Kolo Toure will attempt to clamp down on a Hull City attack that’s managed just 23 goals this season.
Roberto Mancini couldn’t have gotten the defensive duo back at a better time. With the next three matches coming against teams in the bottom half of the league, Mancini will have a chance to get Bridge and Lescott back into the swing of things before facing Liverpool, Chelsea and Tottenham in successive weeks. So far this season, City is 1-1-1 against the three, with a goal differential of minus 2.
If Mancini’s squad is to move up the league standings, it’ll need a bit of help this weekend. Currently sitting sixth – just a point behind Liverpool and two behind Spurs – City could jump into the top four with a win over Hull City and losses or draws by its two nearest competitors. The Reds will face Everton, a squad that’s gone 4-0-5 since losing its last match Nov. 29 to Liverpool. Meanwhile, Spurs will face Aston Villa and Gabriel Agbonlahor – who is coming off a two goal performance at Fulham.
Both squads will have their work cut out for them if they want to keep their place in the league and hold off a newly restocked City team. Manchester will get another boost as the newly acquired Patrick Vieira could make his long awaited debut.
Tags: Carlos Tevez, EPL, Hull City, Jozy Altidore, Manchester City, One Love Soccer, ONELOVE FC, Roberto Mancini, Wayne Bridge
