Manchester City will continue their Champions League journey as they take on German side Borussia Monchengladbach. Given what we know of the team news, will we be seeing many changes to the starting eleven that Pep Guardiola selects?
City continued their record setting win streak as they notched up #18, beating Arsenal in the Premier League. In Europe, they have a great chance to go deep into the knockout stages, and that all starts on Wednesday.
It was a testament to the quality that the Manchester side have that they beat the Gunners, despite starting no centre forward. That might change for this game as the boss might be looking to add more firepower to his team.
City will be starting in a 4-3-3 formation that will have Ederson in goal. In defence, there is likely to be one change with Kyle Walker coming into the team. He will start as the right back and that would mean Joao Cancelo starting on the left.
As for the centre backs, it will once again be the duo of John Stones and Ruben Dias. One of the more notable aspects of the weekend’s game was how untroubled the City defence looked. Their solidity has been a big boost for Guardiola.
Though Kevin De Bruyne started on Sunday, he might be on the bench for this match. As he is just returning from a long term hamstring injury, it would not be wise to rush him.
That would mean a start in midfield for Bernardo Silva. Along with Rodri and Ilkay Gundogan, he’ll form a strong trio in the centre of the midfield. What makes them so dangerous is the constant switching of positions that catches the opposition defence off guard.
Up front, there is a good chance for Sergio Aguero to be starting for Manchester City. The forward hasn’t had a good season as injuries have been a constant.
But he is back in the squad and should be given a chance to be back among the goals. The rest of the frontline will be Phil Foden on the right and Raheem Sterling on the left.
Predicted Manchester City Starting XI Against Gladbach (4-3-3):
Ederson, Kyle Walker, John Stones, Ruben Dias, Joao Cancelo, Rodri, Bernardo Silva, Ilkay Gundogan, Phil Foden, Sergio Aguero, Raheem Sterling