MX23RW : Thursday, April 24 18:05:59| >> :120:6705:6705:
[monks data]
Manchester City logo
Premier League | Gameweek 3
Sep 27, 2020 at 4.30pm UK
Etihad Stadium
Leicester logo

Man City
2 - 5
Leicester

Mahrez (4'), Ake (84')
Ake (60')
FT(HT: 1-1)
Vardy (37' pen., 54', 58' pen.), Maddison (77'), Tielemans (88' pen.)
Tielemans (22'), Soyuncu (47'), Amartey (51')

How Manchester City could line up against Leicester City

Sports Mole looks at how Manchester City could line up for Sunday's Premier League clash with Leicester City at the Etihad Stadium.

Manchester City welcome the early Premier League leaders Leicester City to the Etihad Stadium for their first home game of the new Premier League season on Sunday.

Pep Guardiola's side got their campaign off to a winning start against Wolverhampton Wanderers on Monday night and backed that up by progressing into the fourth round of the EFL Cup in midweek.

However, Guardiola has been vocal about his lack of options ahead of this weekend's match, claiming that he has only 13 fit senior players for the visit of an in-form Leicester side.

Here, Sports Mole looks at how the injury-hit hosts could line up for the contest.



Possible MNC XI vs. LEI

Out: Gabriel Jesus (unspecified), Sergio Aguero (knee), Ilkay Gundogan (coronavirus), Bernardo Silva (quadriceps), Joao Cancelo (foot), Oleksandr Zinchenko (muscle)
Doubtful: Aymeric Laporte (fitness), Nicolas Otamendi (knock)

> Click here for Man City's latest injury and suspension news ahead of this match

Despite Guardiola's complaints that he only has 13 players at his disposal - perhaps strategically timed with just over a week remaining in the transfer window - Man City should still be able to field a side teeming with quality this weekend.

There is no denying that they are missing some key players, though; record scorer Sergio Aguero remains out for at least another month, Ilkay Gundogan will miss at least four games after testing positive for coronavirus and none of Bernardo Silva, Joao Cancelo or Oleksandr Zinchenko are expected back before the international break.

The former champions have been further hit by the news that Gabriel Jesus will miss at least three weeks with an injury he picked up against Wolves - despite playing the full 90 minutes and scoring late on - leaving them without a recognised senior centre-forward.

Aymeric Laporte also remains a major doubt after recovering from coronavirus, while Nicolas Otamendi is not likely to feature this weekend due to a knock he has picked up.

Many star names are still available, though, including Kevin De Bruyne, who is expected to shake off a heavy challenge from his midweek cameo and could even be named as a false nine of sorts in the absence of Jesus and Aguero.

The PFA Player of the Year picked up where he left off in City's opener on Monday night and comes into this game having scored seven goals and set up six more in his last 10 league starts.

Liam Delap, who scored on his debut for the club in midweek, is another option to lead the line, although at 17 years old Guardiola may feel as though he is not yet ready to be thrown straight in from the start of a Premier League game.

Should De Bruyne start furthest forward then Riyad Mahrez and Ferran Torres are among the options to fill in as the number 10 - a role Mahrez played during the win over Bournemouth on Thursday.

Raheem Sterling is also likely to be restored to the starting lineup after midweek, having directly contributed to 13 goals in 14 league games for Man City since the restart in June - a tally only Arsenal's Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang can beat from Premier League players.

Phil Foden is also in good form and his goal and assist against Bournemouth will surely be enough to keep his place in this weekend's XI.

Kyle Walker may be the only other player to retain his starting spot from Thursday night, though, with the likes of Ederson, Nathan Ake, Benjamin Mendy, Rodri and Fernandinho among the players expected to return to the side.

Eric Garcia is now fit again and available, but John Stones may have done enough against Wolves on Monday night to keep his place for this one.


Video prediction

Watch the Sports Mole Football Shorts prediction for this game below:


ID:415914: cacheID:415914:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:8191:
Written by
Barney Corkhill
No Data Analysis info
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola on July 2, 2020
Read Next:
Manchester City season preview - predictions, fixtures, summer signings, starting XI
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool33247275314479
2Arsenal341813363293467
3Manchester CityMan City34187966432361
4Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest33186953391460
5Newcastle UnitedNewcastle331851062441859
6Chelsea33169858401857
7Aston Villa3416995449557
8Bournemouth3313101052401249
9Fulham33139114845348
10Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton33121295353048
11Brentford33137135650646
12Crystal Palace341112114347-445
13Everton33814113440-638
14Manchester UnitedMan Utd33108153846-838
15Wolverhampton WanderersWolves33115174861-1338
16Tottenham HotspurSpurs331141861511037
17West Ham UnitedWest Ham3399153755-1836
18Ipswich TownIpswich3349203371-3821
19Leicester CityLeicester3346232773-4618
20Southampton3325262478-5411


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!