It is time for the Manchester derby as two of the Premier League’s finest go head to head. Ahead of such a big game, it’s time to take a look at the Manchester City predicted lineup to see how they shape up against their local rivals.
Manchester City Predicted Lineup for Manchester Derby
Training for the derby! 💪 pic.twitter.com/8Uuh1jvTJS
— Manchester City (@ManCity) January 13, 2023
How Manchester City Have Lined Up Recently
The Citizens are coming off the back of two straight cup games, which means they’ve experimented with the lineup recently. However, they’ve been pretty steadfast in league matches with a defensive setup of Ederson, Nathan Ake, John Stones, Manuel Akanji, and Rico Lewis or Kyle Walker.
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Ahead of them, the preferred setout in midfield is Ilkay Gundogan, Kevin De Bruyne and Rodri pulling the strings with a front three of Jack Grealish, Erling Haaland and Riyad Mahrez.
Manchester City Recent Form & Tactics
Pep Guardiola has stuck with a 4-3-3 formation in recent times, even when rotating for cup competitions. He briefly tinkered with a 3-2-4-1 against Chelsea but reverted back to his old reliable right after.
They are still going strong although doubts are starting to creep in after the failure to beat Everton and being eliminated from the Carabao Cup by Southampton.
Manchester City Injuries to Consider
The only worrisome injuries for Guardiola are in defence. Both John Stones and Ruben Dias are out, which means the centre-back pairing of Aymeric Laporte and Akanji is the likely set-up for this derby.
Manchester City Predicted Lineup
For this clash with the Red Devils, the side probably sticks with the 4-3-3 formation with the following starting eleven:
GK – Ederson
LB – Nathan Ake
CB – Manuel Akanji
CB – Aymeric Laporte
RB – Kyle Walker
CM – Ilkay Gundogan
CM – Rodri
CM – Kevin De Bruyne
AT – Jack Grealish
AT – Erling Haaland
AT – Riyad Mahrez
