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Pep Guardiola confirmed he would make several changes to Manchester City’s line-up in their upcoming contest against Southampton in the FA Cup semi-final.
After his side’s 1-0 win against Burnley, Guardiola revealed his players are fatigued as well from their high-stakes clash against Arsenal last weekend, stressing that his side need “fresh legs” for Saturday’s outing.
The injured Rodri was the only played who did not start against the Clarets, with the Catalan only making two substitutions during the game; Savinho for Antoine Semenyo and Nico Gonzalez for Rayan Ait-Nouri.
Against Southampton, three players in particular should be granted the chance to start proceedings.
Phil Foden
The last time Phil Foden started a game for Manchester City was back in early March, as his side beat Newcastle United 3-1 at St. James’ Park.
| Phil Foden: 2025/2026 season | |
| Competition | Starts |
| Premier League | 21 |
| FA Cup | 1 |
| Carabao Cup | 3 |
| Champions League | 5 |
Foden has had a challenging season, as he went from being one of the Sky Blues’ most in-form players in the first half of the campaign to becoming a mere squad player in the second.
However, with the Englishman remaining an unused substitute against Burnley, he should be fit and firing for the clash at the Etihad Stadium.
With Rayan Cherki being indispensable to this Manchester City side in recent weeks as well, it would be wise for Pep Guardiola to give him a breather on the weekend.
Nico Gonzalez
Surprisingly, Nico did not start against Burnley despite Rodri’s injury-enforced absence.
Considering Nico O’Reilly was far from his brilliant best in defensive midfield at Turf Moor, the former Porto star merits a start in the side.
Since recovering from his spell on the sidelines through, Rodri’s return has impacted Nico despite the latter being one of City’s most consistent players before the Ballon d’Or winner reclaiming his spot in midfield.
Rodri’s here with the squad. Injury not too serious pic.twitter.com/IZvtpU8odT
— Sam Lee (@SamLee) April 22, 2026
While journalist Sam Lee reported that Rodri’s injury is “not too serious”, his countryman would need a runout against Southampton to gain match-sharpness ahead of subsequent games where he could start regularly.
Omar Marmoush
Much like Foden, Omar Marmoush’s last start came against Newcastle in the FA Cup where he starred by scoring a cracking brace.
The Egyptian international has been unfortunate this campaign to play infrequently this season. Jeremy Doku coming into his own this season and Antoine Semenyo’s ascent at Manchester City.
However, against Southampton, Marmoush could lead the line or even play out wide.
With six goals and three assists to his name in just 13 starts this season, the 27-year-old deserves a chance to start the contest.
