Manchester City have dethroned Liverpool in becoming the most dominant force in English football since the restart. While the Citizens thrashed the Gunners in the first match, they absolutely humiliated Burnley and put five past them in their second game.
Next up, they face a relatively tougher team in Chelsea as the Blues are fresh from their win against Aston Villa. While the congestion of fixtures would start to take a toll on the performance of the side, Pep Guardiola has a lot to worry about with Aguero suffering an injury against Sean Dyche’s side. Here is how the defending champions could lineup in their match against the London side.
Defence
Ederson is a sure starter in goal for his side with the Brazilian’s cleansheet record soaring high since the restart. Knowing Guardiola, we would suggest that Kyle Walker gets the nod ahead of Cancelo for this encounter at the right-back position. Mendy could be back to his usual left-back position against Lampard’s side, and it would be fair to say that the French player deserves the chance.
John Stones should eventually make a comeback to the side, as the manager is not spoilt with options at the centre-back position. However, we feel that this might not be the ideal match for the defender to get into the first eleven, and Pep would have him in mind against Newcastle. Thus, Fernandinho and Laporte should be on the field with Otamendi ready to step in from the bench.
Midfield
Kevin De Bruyne and İlkay Gündoğan both started on the bench against Burnley, and we can expect both these players to be in the starting eleven in the next match. Both midfielders have been in electric form for the side and Pep would expect City to take control of the midfield with them in the team. The other spot might go to Rodri as Pep could opt for solidity in the midfield for this match. David Silva would be on the bench and could join the action later in the game to add the creative spark.
Forward
Sergio Aguero could miss the rest of the season after suffering an injury against Burnley. Therefore, Gabriel Jesus is a sure starter at the centre of the forward line. Sterling did not get on the field on Monday night, and thus we could expect him in the starting lineup. Riyad Mahrez played brilliantly scoring twice in the last game, and therefore we could expect to see his name in the starting eleven for the next match, with Foden likely to be on the bench.
