Man City will head to Old Trafford to take on Manchester United on Saturday and the outcome of this game will have a big impact on City’s title challenge.
Manchester City are currently five points behind Arsenal which is why they cannot afford anything other than a win against their local rivals. Three points will help them breathe down Arsenal’s neck but a loss could push them to the fourth spot in the Premier League table.
City have lost just two league games so far but they go into the Manchester derby at the back of a shock loss to Southampton. The Saints beat them 2-0 to knock them out of the Carabao Cup so Pep Guardiola will have to be extra cautious on Saturday afternoon.
Man City are undefeated in 27 of their last 29 matches in the league but this is not the Man United team which they faced at the start of the season. Erik ten Hag has turned Man United into a much more confident team so they are bound to give a much more stern competition.
Man City team news and injuries:
Centre-back Ruben Dias is the only player who is currently ruled out with an injury so the Man City boss will have a fully fit squad to choose from.
Guardiola rotated his squad in midweek which allowed some regular players a much-deserved rest and all of them will be coming back into the starting XI on Saturday.
Kyle Walker played as a centre-back vs the Saints but he will move to the right-back role. Rico Lewis has been in a decent run of form but there’s no way the manager will put him on the field against Man United.
Jack Grealish and Foden both played in midweek but Riyad Mahrez will come into the side so one of them will have to drop to the bench. Foden and Grealish were both average on Wednesday night so it’s really up to the manager whom he trusts more.
Haaland came off the bench for the Carabao Cup game but he will most definitely start at Old Trafford.
Man City will look to put their Southampton disappointment behind them by coming up with a positive display against Man United but the visitors will have to be very careful because United will come at them with all their might.
Man City predicted line up vs Man United:
Predicted Starting XI(4-3-3): Ederson; Walker, Cancelo, Akanji, Stones; De Bruyne, Gundogan, Rodri; Foden/Grealish, Haaland, Mahrez.
