Man City ended the 2022/23 season with a historic English treble and on Friday night, they will kick off their Premier League title defence against Burnley.
Burnley have returned to the top division after finishing top of the Championship table with 101 points from their 46 matches but the last thing Kompany would have wanted is to face his former team on the very first matchweek. The Clarets will be playing at Turf Moor and it’s highly unlikely they will pick up any points from this match. However, this is their first game back in the EPL so the players will be eager to put up a show for the fans.
Man City suffered a loss in the Community Shield at the hands of Arsenal on Sunday despite leading for most of the 90 minutes but thankfully, it was kind of a warmup so Pep Guardiola won’t be too concerned with his players’ performances.
The transfer market is still open so a lot of changes can happen between now and the end of the month but for Friday, Guardiola should be with the same players who had travelled to London for the Community Shield final.
Manchester City’s team news and possible selection:
The big signing for Man City this summer has been that of Josko Gvardiol from RB Leipzig. The Cityzens have paid close to £80 million for the centre-back but we don’t think he is going to get a start on Friday.
The Croatian defender signed for Manchester City just a few days ago so he will need time to settle down into the squad and under what his new manager wants from him.
On Sunday, John Stones played in central defence alongside Ruben Dias with Akanji playing on the left but on Friday, we think Stones will move to the bench while Akanji is going to partner Dias.
As far as the left-back role is concerned, Joao Cancelo is back in the squad but he is now being linked with a move to Barcelona so the Portugal international is not expected to get a start against Burnley.
Man City have also signed Mateo Kovacic from Chelsea which means he is now going to partner Rodri in central midfield with Kevin De Bruyne playing in his usual No 10 role.
Grealish and Foden will fight it out for the left winger’s role but Jack Grealish had a wonderful 22/23 season so it will be really harsh to keep him on the bench for the first game of the new campaign.
Bernardo Silva is another player who has been linked with an exit but now that Riyad Mahrez has left the club, Guardiola has to stick with Silva out on the right side of attack.
Haaland was really poor against Arsenal but we expect him to snap back into action when City head to Turf Moor to face Burnley.
Man City predicted line up vs Burnley:
Predicted Starting XI(4-2-3-1): Ederson; Walker, Ruben Dias, Akanji, Ake/Cancelo; Rodri, Mateo Kovacic; De Bruyne, Grealish, Silva; Erling Haaland.
