Mark Lawrenson states his prediction for Man City v Birmingham City
Mark Lawrenson is backing Man City to beat Birmingham City in the FA Cup third round on Sunday
Mark Lawrenson is expecting to see Manchester City book their place in the FA Cup fourth round thanks to a comfortable 2-0 win over Birmingham City on Sunday.
The Citizens are preparing to welcome the Championship side to The Etihad as Pep Guardiola’s men look to progress through to the next round of the cup competition.
Guardiola’s side head into the game after having claimed an impressive 2-0 victory away to Manchester United in midweek to book their spot in the EFL Cup final.
Before that, the Citizens produced a brilliant first-half display as they secured a 3-1 victory away to Chelsea FC in the Premier League.
Guardiola will now be keen for his side to get their FA Cup campaign off to a good start, and former Liverpool FC star Lawrenson is tipping the Citizens to claim a comfortable win on Sunday.
Writing in his column for BBC Sport, Lawrenson said: “Manchester City, who beat United in Wednesday’s Carabao Cup semi-final, should be comfortable enough against Birmingham – although Blues boss Aitor Karanka did spring an FA Cup surprise at Etihad Stadium when his Middlesbrough side won there in the fourth round in 2015.”
Manchester City are currently in fifth place in the Premier League table and four points behind leaders Liverpool FC with a game in hand.
The Citizens will take on Brighton in their next Premier League game at The Etihad on Wednesday night.
