Manchester City return to Premier League action after winning the Club World Cup in Saudi Arabia at a canter.
The Cityzens saw off Urawa Red Diamonds and Fluminense to win a record fifth trophy of 2023, but they’ll know that success will count for nothing unless they can get back to winning ways in the Premier League.
City have won just one of their last six Premier League games – away at new boys Luton – and could be eight points behind Liverpool by the time this game gets underway.
Pep Guardiola has been without Kevin De Bruyne for the entire season and has recently lost Erling Haaland to a foot problem – whether or not the Norwegian starts here remains to be seen.
GK: Ederson – City’s number one goalkeeper is occasionally rotated out for Stefan Ortega but you’d be surprised if that happened here.
RB: Kyle Walker – It’s been quite the turnaround for Walker, who Guardiola once said wasn’t suitable for his tactical system.
CB: Ruben Dias – Hasn’t shown the level of consistency you’d expect from a player of his standing, yet he’s still a world class defender,
CB: Josko Gvardiol – The Croatian hasn’t established himself as a first team regular at City, even though he cost a whopping £77m. Rotation, eh?
LB: Nathan Ake – Probably the most improved Premier League defender over the past couple of years.
DM: John Stones – City may feel they need to start Rodri, who picked up an ankle injury in the Club World Cup final, because of their shocking record without him. But this version of Stones may be good enough to fill the void.
CM: Mateo Kovacic – Underwhelming would probably be an accurate description of the former Chelsea man’s start at the Etihad.
CM: Bernardo Silva – In stark contrast, there’s absolutely nothing underwhelming about the performances of Bernardo Silva. A brilliant, brilliant player.
RW: Phil Foden – Enjoying a good run in the team and the increase in minutes has led to an upturn in performance level.
CF: Julian Alvarez – A true diamond for City, shining brightly alongside Erling Haaand when he’s fit and instead of him when he’s absent. Does the nitty gritty bits so well.
LW: Jack Grealish – Another player to blow hot and cold this season, Grealish has certainly upped his level since Jeremy Doku burst into the team to show what he can do.
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