Manchester City resume their Premier League duties after the World Cup with a trip to Elland Road to take on Leeds United on Wednesday evening.
The Cityzens won a 3-2 thriller against Liverpool at the Etihad Stadium last week to progress to the fifth round of the EFL Cup. It was a positive return to competitive action for Pep Guardiola and co. after they went into the World Cup break on a sour note following a 2-1 home defeat to Brentford in the league.
Guardiola knows his Man City team has serious work to do to dethrone table-toppers Arsenal, who could stretch their lead to eight points with a win over West Ham on Boxing Day.
Manchester City Team News
Kalvin Phillips returned from the World Cup overweight and Pep Guardiola will not consider the England midfielder for selection until he gets back in shape.
Ruben Dias will be out for a month with a hamstring injury sustained on international duty with Portugal, while Julian Alvarez has been given an extended period of rest after helping Argentina win the coveted World Cup trophy in Qatar.
Predicted Man City Lineup vs Leeds United (4-3-3)
Goalkeeper
Ederson was rested in the EFL Cup win over Liverpool last week, with Stefan Ortega deputising in goal. However, the Brazilian is expected to return back to the starting XI and in goal at Leeds United.
Defence
John Stones came off the bench against Liverpool in the EFL Cup but is expected to start in midweek. The England international should partner Aymeric Laporte in central defence, as the duo look to keep a fast and exciting Leeds attack at bay.
Kyle Walker was an unused substitute last week but is pushing for a return to the first XI. He is likely to feature at right-back, with Joao Cancelo hoping to enjoy a productive night from the left-back position at Elland Road.
Midfield
Rodri will reprise his No.6 role and anchor Man City’s midfield. Ahead of Rodri, Kevin de Bruyne and Bernardo Silva’s flair, creativity and link-up play in box-to-box roles could cause Leeds’ defence all kinds of problems.
The trio of Rodri, Silva and De Bruyne will look to take control of the game as quickly as possible at a hostile Elland Road. Ilkay Gundogan and Cole Palmer—the duo that started against Liverpool in the EFL Cup last week—have to be content for spots on the bench.
Attack
A reinvigorated Erling Haaland will be raring to go and get himself on the scoresheet against Leeds, having opened the scoring in the cup win over Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool.
Riyad Mahrez netted as well, which could see him being rewarded with another start. Should that happen, Mahrez will feature on the right flank, with Phil Foden expected to start on the left after coming on as a substitute in the cup fixture last week.
The trio of Haaland, Foden and Mahrez will look to combine well within themselves in the final third and wreak havoc against a porous Leeds defence.
