- Man City must beat Bournemouth to remain in title race
- Could be Pep Guardiola’s second to last game
- Antoine Semenyo starts against old club
Pep Guardiola has named his Manchester City team for what could be his final away trip at the club.
The likely exit of Pep Guardiola is causing quite the stir, but tonight Man City just need to focus on getting three points against Bournemouth.
Andoni Iraola’s team are unbeaten since January, making the task at hand a difficult one. But there is simply no room for error.
Draw or lose and the Premier League title has been lost with a match to spare. However, a victory would keep City’s hopes alive ahead of the Aston Villa game on Sunday.
A big performance is required at the Vitality Stadium, and news on which players will be starting has now been revealed.
Pep Guardiola makes two changes to FA Cup final team
Gianluigi Donnarumma takes up his usual place in the lineup tonight after James Trafford was given his moment at Wembley.
There are no changes to report in defence, but in midfield, Mateo Kovacic is making a rare Premier League start.
Tonight’s team to face Bournemouth! 💪🩵
— Manchester City (@ManCity) May 19, 2026
XI | Donnarumma, Nunes, Khusanov, Guéhi, O’Reilly, Rodri, Kovacic, Bernardo (C), Semenyo, Doku, Haaland
SUBS | Trafford, Dias, Reijnders, Stones, Marmoush, Cherki, Gvardiol, Savinho, Foden
🤝 @etihad pic.twitter.com/jYkOJdbCaD
Antoine Semenyo is starting against his former club, and Rayan Cherki has once again been left on the Man City bench.
Man City matchday squad in full
25. Gianluigi Donnarumma
27. Matheus Nunes
45. Abdukodir Khusanov
15. Marc Guehi
33. Nico O’Reilly
16. Rodri
8. Mateo Kovacic
20. Bernardo Silva ©
42. Antoine Semenyo
11. Jeremy Doku
9. Erling Haaland
Bench: Trafford, Dias, Reijnders, Stones, Marmoush, Cherki, Gvardiol, Savinho, Foden
Pep Guardiola highlights Bournemouth’s advantage
Both City and Bournemouth have good reasons for wanting a victory tonight. The Sky Blues are chasing down Arsenal, while the hosts could secure Champions League football next season.
And while Man City arrive with the added motivation of a recent FA Cup triumph, it is Bournemouth who will be feeling a lot fresher.
Speaking ahead of the game, Guardiola said: “They [Bournemouth] don’t let you breathe. Always when those teams are so intense, there is always the fatigue, the amount of games they can reduce a little bit this tempo.
“But with 10 days to prepare for that game, I expect the more intense, aggressive and demanding team and then you have to be smart to be ready for what they are [going] to do.”
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