Have Manchester City thrown the title away?

Earlier in the season, the Eastlands outfit had a seven point advantage over bitter title rivals Manchester United but now it is the red half of the city which has the advantage. Sir Alex Ferguson’s team are four points clear atop the Premier League, although City do have a game in hand.

That game is against a resurgent Chelsea outfit on Wednesday – a fixture which is far from a home banker for Roberto Mancini’s men, despite the fact City have yet to drop a point at home this season. The west London side have improved significantly since the dispensing of Andre Villas-Boas and will fancy their chances of taking points away from Eastlands. Those betting on football should remember this.

The change in form of the two contenders has been startling. City battered all before them at the start of the season, winning 11 of their 12 opening Premier League games, including a 6-1 demolition of United at Old Trafford.

However, since Christmas, they have started to wobble. Defeats to Sunderland, Everton and Swansea in the league, as well as Manchester United in the FA Cup, have cast doubt on their title aspirations. The key to their problems has been their away form. They may have not dropped a point at home this season but winning just seven of their 14 matches on the road is not title winning form.

Questions were asked about Sir Alex Ferguson’s tenure following the City demolition in October but since mid-January, United have picked up 25 of the 27 points on offer. The only two dropped was in a 3-3 draw against Chelsea when they came back from 3-0 down. People searching for football predictions need to bear this in mind.

At this stage of the season, momentum is everything and United are also blessed with an easier run-in. City are still to play Chelsea and Arsenal whereas Ferguson’s side no longer have to play any side in the top seven barring City at Eastlands in late April.

A few weeks ago, pundits were saying that this game between the rivals will decide the destiny of the title but by then, City could be out of the picture. They need to get back on track quickly, but it will be tough against Roberto Di Matteo’s resurgent side tomorrow evening.