5 reasons why Manchester City may not get 100 points this season

Manchester City is clearly on course to win the Premier League and in a very handsome fashion. Sitting pretty at the top with 78 points from 29 matches, there has been hardly any competition for the Premier League title this season.

With Antonio Conte claiming that City may even reach the magic figure of 100 points this season, this is an analysis of the possibility of this happening.

Here are five reasons why it may be difficult for the Cityzens to achieve the 100 points mark:

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#5 Low margin of error

The 100-point mark would be a pleasing achievement for Guardiola

In order to understand the magnitude of this achievement, let's take a look at the team which has scored the most points ever in a season in the Premier League.

Chelsea in 2004-05 under Jose Mourinho scored a record 95 points which contained a total of 29 wins, 8 draws, and only a single solitary loss.

Currently, Manchester City stands at 25 wins, 3 draws, and one loss. For the Cityzens to win the League with more than 100 points, they will have to win at least 7 of the 9 remaining games while drawing one.

This means that they cannot afford to take even a single match lightly if they are to achieve this feat.

A single loss would require City to go unbeaten for the rest of the season. While the league leaders have endured only one loss till now, it is never easy to get wins week in and week out.

#4 The Manchester Derby

Will de Gea finally put in a good performance against City

Among the fixtures which remain for City, they are yet to play Manchester United in a match which is sure to be one of their toughest fixtures.

Having won 2-1 at Old Trafford, the Cityzens would be looking to get another derby win under their belt at the Etihad Stadium.

Also, the Red Devils would be looking to stop their arch rivals from confirming the Premier League trophy in this tie. With the leaders 13 points ahead and with a game in hand, if City wins at the Etihad, they would lift the Premier League trophy against their local rivals

This is one scenario which the Red Devils would be looking to avoid at all costs. A draw or a loss in this fixture would make City's ambition of 100 points almost impossible.

#3 An away trip to Wembley

Tottenham Hotspur will be a difficult opponent

Another tricky fixture for City would be an away trip to Wembley to play against Tottenham HotSpur.

Spurs are currently third in the Premier League and with the team out of Champions League, their attention would be on the remaining fixtures in the league.

The race for Champions League qualification remains tight, therefore, Mauricio Pochettino and his players would be looking to get maximum points from their remaining matches including the tie against the league leaders.

Interestingly the fixtures against United and Spurs are separated by a Champions League quarter-final second leg match.

Therefore, the Sky Blues may not be very fresh for their match against Spurs and Pep may resort to squad rotation at Wembley.

#2 Tough fixtures against sides battling relegation

The remaining fixtures for the league leaders in the Premier League

The image above shows the fixtures that Manchester City have left in the league.

A loss in any of the fixtures against Manchester United or Tottenham Hotspur would leave City requiring a win in all the other fixtures - which is a very tough task even for the league leaders.

With the battle against relegation tighter than ever, West Ham or Swansea City cannot be taken lightly. These teams would be looking to get whatever they can from their games against City.

On the other hand, the Cityzens may not have a lot of ambition going into such ties. This is a tough run-in for Pep and his men and their players would have to continue playing well in order to get more to the 100-points mark.

#1 Champions League fixtures are now more important

The UEFA Champions League Trophy remains the Holy Grail for City

Manchester City has qualified for the quarters of the Champions League and would be looking to make a good run in the competition.

With the team having almost won the league, it would not be surprising if Pep starts to rest key players for the European games. As mentioned earlier, some of their key fixtures would come up in-between the Champions League ties.

Hence with one hand already on the Premier League trophy, Guardiola may look to rest the likes of Kevin De Bruyne and David Silva thereby giving other teams a better chance of winning or drawing.

Although City has a big squad which has been able to do the job in the league, the team may slacken (as seen in the game against Basel) given the low need for results.

Manchester United had a similar predicament in the 2012-13 season where they were looking good to finish at over 95 points but ended up with a few draws and finishing with 89 points.

Given these reasons, Pep's men may just end up short of 100 points. The team has a higher probability of beating Chelsea's record of 95 points which would require them to get 17 points from 9 games. This looks like a more achievable target for the Cityzens.