Pep Guardiola will be racking his brains as to how he can stifle Aston Villa’s unwavering momentum at Villa Park on Wednesday night.
While Villa have been fortunate to walk away with four points from their two recent away trips, they’ve won their last 13 Premier League outings on home soil ahead of Manchester City’s visit.
Like Villa, City have manifested their vulnerabilities in recent outings and will be without a couple of key performers on Wednesday night.
With Arsenal clicking into gear ahead of the all-important festive period, City can ill-afford to fall too far behind at the top of the Premier League table.
Here’s how the Cityzens could lineup against Villa in midweek.
GK: Ederson – After conceding to Son Heung-min yet again on Sunday, Ederson will face another xG defier in Ollie Watkins on Wednesday night.
CB: Kyle Walker – The stalwart City defender is a crucial cog in the system and Guardiola can ill-afford to rotate him in midweek.
CB: Ruben Dias – Dias is in a bit of a rut, but Guardiola will likely play the robust defender through his lapse in form.
CB: Nathan Ake – Despite getting dunked on by Dejan Kulusevski at the death, the stellar one-v-one defender will likely get rotated into the side for Josko Gvardiol.
DM: John Stones – Stones hasn’t featured since returning from injury and has been an unused substitute in City’s last three games. Now is the time to bring the supreme performer back into the starting XI.
DM: Manuel Akanji – With Rodri suspended, Guardiola could seek stability by deploying Akanji alongside Stones. The Switzerland international has performed the ‘Stones role’ in recent outings.
RM: Bernardo Silva – The great all-rounder has primarily been used in a central position this season, but he could be asked to hold the width down the right at Villa Park.
AM: Julian Alvarez – The Argentine has thrived in Kevin De Bruyne’s absence and notched another goal contribution amid Sunday’s chaos.
AM: Mateo Kovacic – Kovacic failed to impress in a deeper position during Rodri’s previous suspension, so Guardiola could deploy to Croatia international in a more advanced position in midweek. His role will be more box-to-box with Pep potentially sacrificing an attacking option.
LM: Phil Foden – Foden has been excellent during City’s blip and is a sure bet to continue in the side. He could function off the left at Villa if Jeremy Doku misses out with Jack Grealish suspended.
ST: Erling Haaland – Maybe he is human, who knows? Haaland will be looking to make the most of Villa’s high line and cash in some xG on Wednesday night.
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