Manchester City kickstart their preparations for a return to Premier League action when they tackle fellow City Football Group outfit Girona at the Academy Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
The Citizens have not taken to the field since losing 2-1 to Brentford last month, while their Spanish counterparts drew 1-1 with Osasuna on Wednesday.
Match preview
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Pep Guardiola will be forced to watch his former student celebrate Christmas Day at the top of the Premier League table, as the reigning champions continue to play catch-up to Mikel Arteta's Arsenal in the race for the 2022-23 top-flight crown.
A shock 2-1 loss to Brentford just before the World Cup break saw Man City fall five points behind the Gunners at the top of the rankings, although they were due to tackle the North London outfit earlier this season before Queen Elizabeth II's death led to a major calendar shake-up.
Prior to resuming their quest for a third successive Premier League title against Leeds United on Boxing Day, Guardiola's side must pit their wits against old foes Liverpool in the fourth round of the EFL Cup next Thursday, and two fixtures with Chelsea in the league and FA Cup is far from a welcoming way to enter 2023.
However, what has been warmly welcomed by Man City fans is the news that Guardiola has signed a new contract at the Etihad until the summer of 2025, although Brazil are supposedly already prepared to test the English champions' resolve as they search for Tite's successor.
For now, though, Guardiola will test out his first-team regulars and academy graduates in equal measure as his side prepare for their only winter friendly of the year, but while a training camp in Abu Dhabi was on the menu for City, Girona have been worked to the maximum during the World Cup period.
Ending the first half of the season with three successive wins under their belt was the perfect tonic for a Girona side whose quest to avoid an immediate demotion from La Liga did not get off to the ideal start.
Only two of the visitors' first 14 matches in the 2022-23 La Liga season ended in victory, but successive 2-1 wins over Athletic Bilbao and Elche just before the World Cup break allowed Michel's side to surge to 13th in the table - five points clear of Sevilla in the drop zone.
Girona also secured victory by the same scoreline over Quintanar del Rey in the Copa del Rey and recorded a hard-fought 1-1 draw against Real Madrid during a five-game unbeaten run, and they carried that form over into their winter friendlies.
After overcoming Standard Liege 1-0, Girona held Osasuna to a 1-1 draw in midweek as Aleix Garcia cancelled out Lucas Torro's opener, stretching their unbeaten run across competitive and non-competitive fixtures to an impressive seven matches.
A remarkable 14-game scoring streak will also serve Girona well against a weakened Man City side, but the 1-0 success over Standard Liege also represents their only clean sheet from 18 matches in all competitions, and a well-rested Erling Braut Haaland can be sure to punish such frailties.
Team News
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Man City attacker Julian Alvarez is preparing to start for Argentina in the World Cup final and thus remains absent here, while a host of other Qatar 2022 representatives are yet to return to training with Guardiola's men.
English quintet Phil Foden, John Stones, Kyle Walker, Jack Grealish and Kalvin Phillips are all taking more time off following their quarter-final exit, while Ederson, Nathan Ake, Bernardo Silva, Joao Cancelo and Ruben Dias also suffered last-eight heartbreak.
Manuel Akanji, Aymeric Laporte and Rodri were all eliminated earlier and could therefore return to training sooner alongside Erling Braut Haaland and Kevin De Bruyne, who should both play a part in this one.
Riyad Mahrez can also expect to line up for the Citizens, and Guardiola should also be working with a wealth of youngsters such as Cole Palmer, Liam Smith and Carlos Borges.
City's treatment room is empty at the minute, but the same cannot be said for Girona, who have Juanpe Ramirez and Ibrahima Kebe out for the long term with heel and knee injuries respectively.
Borja Garcia's cruciate tear will also take slightly longer to heal, while David Lopez, Valery Fernandez, Javi Hernandez and Rodrigo Riquelme could complete a seven-man absentee list for the Spanish side.
Two City loanees in Yangel Herrera and Yan Couto could come up against their parent club, although the former must also shake off a fitness concern alongside Reinier, who is enjoying a temporary spell at the club from Real Madrid.
Manchester City possible starting lineup:
Carson; Lewis, Burns, Katongo, Gomez; Palmer, Robertson, De Bruyne; Mahrez, Haaland, Borges
Girona possible starting lineup:
Gazzaniga; Couto, A. Martinez, Bueno, Gutierrez; Terrats, Romeu, Garcia; Martin, Stuani, Vallejo
We say: Manchester City 3-1 Girona
While Man City are far from full strength as they await the returns of their World Cup contingent, Girona's plethora of injury concerns spells trouble for Michel and his leaky defence.
The Spaniards never seem to have a problem making the net ripple, but the De Bruyne and Haaland show should take centre stage as a rejigged Man City side march to victory.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Ben Knapton
