Manchester City will clash heads with Arsenal at the Etihad on Saturday afternoon, hoping to pick up all three points. The Citizens will be heading into the contest on the back of a thumping 5-0 win against Norwich City, whereas the Gunners recorded a 2-0 defeat against Chelsea last week.
Pep Guardiola will probably opt for a 4-3-3 formation with a couple of tweaks from the last game. Riyad Mahrez might get the nod over Ferran Torres, whereas Raheem Sterling looks likely to make his way back into the starting eleven.
4-3-3 Manchester City Predicted Lineup Vs Arsenal
Defence
Ederson Moraes will operate in between the sticks for the upcoming clash. The Brazilian shot-stopper will be hoping to put up a strong performance and secure a clean sheet on Saturday.
Aymeric Laporte will continue to form the centre-half partnership with Ruben Dias at the heart of City’s backline.
Joao Cancelo will start at the left-back position, whereas Kyle Walker will fill in on the other flank as the right-back. The full-backs will be expected to stay compact and keep their shape defensively.
Midfield
Rodri might start in the holding midfield position and could be assigned with more of a defensive role to shield the home side’s back-four.
Ilkay Gundogan will slot into the central midfield role, whereas Jack Grealish is expected to start in the attacking midfield position. The duo would be determined to set up some clear cut goal scoring chances for the front men.
Speaking on Thursday, Belgium’s coach Roberto Martinez confirmed that Kevin De Bruyne is still not 100 per cent fit for the weekend clash.
“Kevin is not available. As you know he had some minutes against Tottenham.
“But after that game he still felt some pain (in his ankle). He’s taking a different route now. He’s not gonna be playing this weekend. The idea is to see how his injury progresses.
“Kevin is working really hard behind the scenes to get fully fit and to be ready for a demanding season. At the moment he’s not 100 percent fit.”
Bernardo Silva will have to settle for a place on the bench, but he could come on to make a cameo appearance in the second half.
Attack
Raheem Sterling and Riyad Mahrez will take up the wide positions, playing on the left and right-wing respectively.
Gabriel Jesus will lead the line for Manchester City this weekend. The Brazilian international will be hoping to get his name on the scoresheet when he faces off against the Arsenal defence that has conceded four goals in their last two matches.
