Manchester City will entertain Bournemouth at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday looking to continue their recent good run in the Premier League. The Citizens were held to a highly entertaining 2-2 draw away at Lyon in the Champions League. However, Pep Guardiola will have the option of rotating his squad which should be enough to see off the Cherries this weekend.
Eddie Howe’s men have made a fantastic start to this campaign, but they have fallen off the pace in recent weeks after suffering three consecutive defeats in the Premier League. Guardiola will lineup his team in a 4-3-3 formation and might start Fabian Delph at left-back in the absence of Benjamin Mendy.
4-3-3 Manchester City Predicted Lineup To Face Bournemouth
Defence
Ederson will resume his goalkeeping duties for the Citizens while Arijanet Muric has to wait for his chance on Guardiola’s bench. The Brazilian shot-stopper has been a solid presence at the back for City and has conceded just five goals in 13 matches in the Premier League so far.
The dynamic centre-back pair of Aymeric Laporte and John Stones will feature at the heart of the City backline as Guardiola trusts them due to their outstanding ball-playing capabilities. Benjamin Mendy is still sidelined due to a long-term injury, so Fabian Delph is expected to take his place at left-back as he looks to impress by making some runs behind the Cherries defence. Kyle Walker would seek to use his pace and agility down the right flank.
Man City will have an excellent opportunity to stretch their lead at the top of the Premier League standings with a win against Bournemouth on Saturday, so their defenders need to be at their best if they want to cope with the goal-threat of Callum Wilson and Joshua King.
Midfield
The trio of Fernandinho, Ilkay Gundogan and David Silva will look to run the show at the middle of the pitch. They will continue to create chances and support the City frontline while Fernandinho sits deep and does all the defensive work by breaking down some of the Cherries’ attacks.
Both Bernardo Silva and Kevin De Bruyne will not feature in this game at the Etihad as they are still recovering from their respective injuries.
Attack
Pep Guardiola’s frontline would be comprised of Sergio Aguero spearheading the City charge while Raheem Sterling looks to use his quickness and agility down the right wing. Leroy Sane has performed well in recent weeks which means that he could get the nod to start this weekend.
The German scored a brace of goals against West Ham United last weekend which should give him a lot of confidence going into this clash.
