Manchester City will lock horns with Chelsea at the Etihad on Sunday evening, hoping to pick up a positive result in the third round of the FA Cup competition. Thursday night’s Premier League clash between the two sides ended in a 1-0 victory for Pep Guardiola’s men; however, Graham Potter would look to get a different result this time around.
Team News
Chelsea
The Blues might have as many as ten absentees in the third round of the FA Cup.
‘Already stripped of eight potential starters before kick-off, Graham Potter saw two of his three forwards, Raheem Sterling and Christian Pulisic, hobble off in the opening minutes. Although Mason Mount may recover from a training ground knock, the latest two casualties seem likely to join a potential list of Armando Broja, Ben Chilwell, Wesley Fofana, Reece James, N’Golo Kante, Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Edou Mendy as unavailable.’ – the official website stated.
Manchester City
The Citizens are expected to be without the services of Aymeric Laporte and Ruben Dias on Sunday.
Talking Tactics
Graham Potter will probably opt for the 4-2-3-1 formation with several tweaks from the last game. In defence, Trevoh Chalobah might get the nod over Thiago Silva, whereas Jorginho looks likely to make his way back into the starting eleven.
The English tactician will be looking to implement the same high-press tactic as he did in midweek. However, it would be interesting to see how effectively they can make their chances count against the team that has won four of the last five FA Cup meetings between the two sides.
On the other hand, Guardiola is also set to continue with his preferred 4-3-3 formation, with Julian Alvarez expected to lead the line.
Predicted Lineups
Chelsea: Kepa; Cucurella, Koulibaly, Chalobah, Azpilicueta; Jorginho, Zakaria, Chukwuemeka; Ziyech, Havertz; Aubameyang
Manchester City: Ederson; Cancelo, Stones, Akanji, Lewis; Phillips, Gundogan, De Bruyne; Grealish, Alvarez, Mahrez
Prediction
Manchester City 2-0 Chelsea
