Manchester City welcome Crystal Palace to M11 on Saturday for a Premier League clash – and an announcement ahead of the game may irk Erling Haaland.
Pep Guardiola will take on Oliver Glasner at the Etihad Stadium with a place in next season’s UEFA Champions League on the line, as Manchester City currently sit sixth.
| Position | Team | Played MP | Won W | Drawn D | Lost L | For GF | Against GA | Diff GD | Points Pts |
| 3 |  Nottm ForestNottingham Forest | 31 | 17 | 6 | 8 | 51 | 37 | 14 | 57 |
| 4 |  ChelseaChelsea | 31 | 15 | 8 | 8 | 54 | 37 | 17 | 53 |
| 5 |  NewcastleNewcastle | 30 | 16 | 5 | 9 | 52 | 39 | 13 | 53 |
| 6 |  Man CityManchester City | 31 | 15 | 7 | 9 | 57 | 40 | 17 | 52 |
| 7 |  Aston VillaAston Villa | 31 | 14 | 9 | 8 | 46 | 46 | 0 | 51 |
| 8 |  FulhamFulham | 31 | 13 | 9 | 9 | 47 | 42 | 5 | 48 |
The Eagles represent difficult opposition. Only Liverpool have won more points in the Premier League since 2025 began, and Manchester City needed an equaliser from Rico Lewis to salvage a 2-2 draw in the reverse fixture at Selhurst Park in December.
Before a ball is even kicked – however – Erling Haaland will surely be frustrated by a Premier League announced ahead of the game.
Erling Haaland won’t be pleased as Jarred Gillett named referee for Manchester City vs Crystal Palace
The Premier League have handed responsibility to Jarred Gillett for this game, just weeks after the Manchester City No.9 complained about his “big mistake” in the 1-0 win away at Tottenham.
As you may recall, Haaland – who Rodri has tipped for the Ballon d’Or – saw a second goal disallowed inside the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium after the Australian adjudged him to have handled the ball before finishing.
Despite VAR showing no clear handball, those over at Stockley Park opted to stick with the on-field decision by Gillett due to a lack of sufficient evidence to overturn his call.
In response, Haaland told the BBC: “It’s because he (Gillett) made the decision on the pitch, that it was a freekick. I don’t think it is, it’s clearly a big mistake, but we are humans, we make mistakes. It’s a great goal and I don’t think it’s handball but what can we do.”
The man born in Leeds doubled down during a chat with TNT Sports too.
Of course, the Norway international won’t be involved against Crystal Palace after suffering a serious ankle injury during the FA Cup win over Bournemouth, but he may feel some frustration to see Gillett involved in a game Manchester City simply have to win.
Hugo Viana gets a chance to watch Daniel Munoz
Saturday’s game gives Hugo Viana an opportunity to scout a reported summer target.
The Sun recently claimed that Manchester City want to sign Daniel Munoz from Crystal Palace this summer, and the Colombia international, who scored in the aforementioned 2-2 draw at Selhurst Park, has a tempting £25m release clause.
So far this season, the South American has performed to a very high level, scoring six goals and providing six assists in 36 appearances from his right wing-back position, so you can understand why Manchester City have been alerted to his talent.
