Another Manchester City match, but this time in a different competition because this weekend they are up against Chris Hughton’s Brighton in the FA Cup semi-final.
Manchester City also play against Tottenham on Tuesday 9th April, therefore they have decided to stay in London after the FA Cup game. As a result of this it looks as if the entire squad have travelled, even those who are technically injured. This makes it slightly harder to predict who will start because players such as Sergio Aguero, who have a knock, may make a surprising start.
However, the Man City squad is unbelievably strong and with Pep Guardiola’s clever rotation they will still be able to put out a very strong side against Brighton. There was a surprise start for Phil Foden in the week, however this lineup will most likely contain less surprises.
Here’s how I think that Manchester City will start:
GK: Ederson
Ederson has played every round of the FA Cup this season and now the business end of the competition has started, Ederson will continue.
RB: Kyle Walker
I think that Kyle Walker would have played had there not been an injury to Oleksandr Zinchenko in the week, this was shown by the fact he was rested for Danilo.
CB: Nicolas Otamendi
The CB’s are the hardest to predict because all four are currently fit and there is the dilemma over whether Aymeric Laporte will fill the gap left by Oleksandr Zinchenko. I feel that John Stones will be rested for the Champions League game against Spurs, thus Nicolas Otamendi will start.
CB: Aymeric Laporte
It feels wrong to drop City’s best CB this season and therefore I cannot see Pep Guardiola doing it either. However, I feel there may be a sight chance he does not play, because he is currently the strongest left back option to use against Tottenham.
LB: Danilo
Danilo was really good against Cardiff and as Pep Guardiola reminded everybody in the week, Danilo played superbly against Liverpool (on merit) therefore he can be relied on when it matters.
CDM: Ilkay Gundogan
There was a time this season when this option was unthinkable and Fernandinho was simply a given. However, Ilkay Gundogan was excellent in his absence and deserves to start the semi-final which will allow Fernandinho to be fit for Tottenham.
CM: Bernardo Silva
Bernardo Silva was handed a well earned rest for the game against Cardiff therefore he will play this game, either centrally or on the right. However, I fancy he will play down the middle because a certain German international deserves a run of games.
CM: David Silva
I believe that David Silva will partner his namesake in the middle, unless we are surprised and Kevin De Bruyne plays 3 in a row or Phil Foden gets another game. I think starting Kevin De Bruyne would be a very risky move and sadly I cannot see Foden.
RW: Raheem Sterling
Raheem Sterling, like Bernardo Silva, will play this game whether he is on the right or the left because they are both vital to the team. However, I think he will play on the right to accommodate for Leroy Sane on the left.
LW: Leroy Sané
I have said for weeks that I believe Leroy Sane deserves a run in the team and when he eventually gets that deserved run in the team, he will be superb. I think that Saturday provides the opportunity for two good performances to show Pep that he also is undroppable.
ST: Gabriel Jesus
Gabriel Jesus did everything but score on Wednesday night and the fitness of Sergio Aguero means that he will get another chance to score. However, I do think that Aguero will be on the bench so the pressure will be on for Gabriel Jesus to score before the hour mark.