Maybe just turn up anyway and see what happens…
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| Etihad Stadium |
Predicted line-up, subs and outcome:
(Number correct from the starting line-up in the last game: 10/11).
Fluid 4-1-4-1 / 4-5-1 / 4-3-3:
____________________Haaland____________________
Foden_____________________________________Silva
_____________________________De Bruyne_________
_________Gundogan_____________________________
_____________________Rodri_____________________
Gomez__________________________________Cancelo
____________Dias______________Akanji____________
____________________Ederson_____________________
Subs: Carson, Ortega, Lewis, Wilson-Esbrand, Ake, Stones, Phillips, Grealish, Palmer, Knight, Mahrez, Alvarez.
Ederson continues in net.
I think we’re going to see the same back-4 that faced Sevilla in our last game, so that’ll be Sergio, Ruben, Manuel & Joao.
Rodders just in front of those and in front of him, an attacking quartet of midfielders / wingers in the form of Phil, Ilkay, Kevin & Bernardo.
Erling ahead of the lot of ‘em.
Scott & Stefan are the two reserve keepers in ‘the 12’; Rico, Josh, Nathan & John make up 4 back-up defenders on the side. Kalvin, Jack, Cole, Ben & Riyad are the midfielders & wingers waiting to come on; Julian is the reserve striker. I’ve stuck John Stones on the bench following his injury lay-off but the way Pep was talking about how well he looked in training; I suppose there’s a chance he could make ‘the 11’ instead.
Notable absences:
- Benjamin Mendy – Suspended by the club until further notice.
- Kyle Walker – Still out injured with a muscular issue, I think it is, and will be missing for a week to a fortnight; with the countdown clock having started on 05.09.2022 (10-days ago now). There’s still no sign of him in training and, so, I’m guessing it’s gonna be longer than a fortnight and that he’ll miss our weekend domestic game as well as this European fixture.
- Aymeric Laporte – Back in training and looking good, by all accounts! That’s earlier than was expected, I think, and that’s good news, of course! This game is far too early for the French born, Spanish international to make the bench and although his manager believes that we’re more likely to see a return post-international friendly break; we could see him on the subs bench on Saturday.
Do I agree with Pep’s (predicted) line-up?
Sure do – in fact, I’d say that’s about our strongest available 11 right now; taking into account both those who aren’t ready to take part at all and those who are just returning from setbacks / aren’t ready to start a game.
Result? What do I know about our German visitors?
1. When you look through their squad, they’re a side filled with a lot of talented & experienced players; especially in the midfield department.
2. Their Head Coach doesn’t even turn 40 until October and is already on his 4th job with the club; having previously filled the posts of Assistant Coach, Caretaker Coach and Technical Director.
3. Their league record so far this season reads: Played 6, Won 4, Lost 2. For 8, Against 7.
4. They like yellow. Wow do they like yellow! Their home strip is yellow tops with black stripes, black shorts and yellow socks. Their 2nd strip is all back but the shirt, shorts and socks all have yellow trim to some degree, which is fair enough. And their 3rd strip? Huh…take away the black stripes from the home shirt and both their 1st & 3rd strips are practically identical! What’s the point of that?! Seriously, have a look…
5. They are, apparently, bringing 3,000 fans with them and if they do, it’s gonna be one hell of a noisy night at the Etihad; as they amass to create their “wall” at one side of the South Stand…yes, a yellow wall, of course.
I’m certainly not going to mention the various links we have with their ex-players and whether that’ll make any difference – God the press has squeezed the flippin’ life out of that one over the last few days!
What I will say is that I think they might score and if they score first; their experienced midfield in a side back-up by 3,000 very noisy fans could make it very difficult for us to break down. So…we just need to make sure they don’t score first then.
If they do breach our defence, I still think with that [predicted] starting 11 we’ll score more. It’s 2 from 2 for us in this season’s Champions League campaign; it’s a City win in other words.
Last season’s, corresponding pre-match prediction and result…
Prediction: N/A
Result: N/A
Expected weather conditions during the game: Not too bad at all…but I’d still take a jacket or coat. It’s dry and 14 / 15C doesn’t sound too bad on the face of it for a mid-September game in England but there’s a bit of a north-westerly breeze that could cause a few shivers with the sun having-already set; especially as fans make their way home and the temperature continues to slide away.
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| Solidarity |
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