Manchester City are back in Premier League action on Saturday as they make the trip to Crystal Palace. With the league title almost in the bag, let’s take a look at the team news for City. (For the City starting XI prediction go here)
After it looked like they were heading towards a defeat, Pep Guardiola’s men came storming back to beat PSG 2-1 in the first leg of their Champions League semifinal tie. That win put them in an ideal position versus Palace, so that they can maintain a relaxed attitude in this clash.
One player who definitely will be missing in action is centre back John Stones. The Englishman will be serving the second of his two-game suspension. Aymeric Laporte will likely replace the defender in the starting line-up.
There are no other injury or suspension worries, which will be good news for City. We can expect to see a lot of changes to the playing eleven. This will be done to keep the squad fresh for the semi-final second leg next week.
The hosts have done well to stay clear of the relegation zone this season, but they will find it extremely tough to keep the team from Manchester quiet. They do have a couple of players who are talented enough to worry City’s defence. Wilfried Zaha and Eberechi Eze are extremely skillful and could cause problems.
Even with a changed side, Guardiola has enough firepower to break down any defence. We can expect to see Raheem Sterling and Gabriel Jesus given a chance at the weekend. These two will want to do well and make a case to be included for the second leg.
City will definitely have a lot of the ball and how they use it will decide the outcome of the match.
Manchester City must ensure that they do not treat this game as a distraction ahead of a more important clash, but if they do get complacent, Palace could establish themselves. However, we have seen this season that City can get the desired result even if they are not at their best. On Saturday, Guardiola can expect to return to Manchester with the three points from Selhurst Park.