Due to a small holiday getaway, there'll be no pre-match blog posting ahead of our League Cup 4th round fixture away at Spurs on Wednesday 30th October (8:15pm KO GMT).
Additionally, there may be no pre-match blog posting for our league match away at Bournemouth either but I might get an opportunity to write and publish one before that 3:00pm kick off on Saturday 2nd November.
…come to town.
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| Etihad Stadium |
Predicted line-up, subs and outcome:
(Number correct from the starting line-up in the last game which, for me blog-wise, was our game against Wolves: 8/11).
A very fluid 4-1-4-1 / 4-5-1 / 4-3-3 (occasional 3-6-1 / 2-7-1 🤪):
____________________Haaland____________________
Nunes___________________________________Savinho
_______________________________Foden___________
____________Silva_______________________________
____________________Kovacic____________________
Gvardiol___________________________________Lewis
____________Dias_______________Akanji___________
____________________Ederson____________________
Subs: Carson, Ortega, Ake, Stones, McAtee, Gundogan, O’Reilly.
Ederson returns in goals after stepping aside last Wednesday for the second of three Champions League games so far this season.
With good options both at left-back and in central defence, at least, there is a little extra room for error with my predictions here. I’m going for a back-4, occasional 3 or even 2, at times I’m sure, of Josko, Ruben, Manuel and Rico. We need to be very mindful of those counter attacks whenever Gvardiol and Lewis decide to join the midfield.
Mateo is likely to be the deepest-lying midfielder, while I’m going for Matheus, Bernardo, Phil and Savinho ahead of the Croatian. Hats off to Nunes for a fine display in midweek – to repeat what one reporter said following the game, welcome to the party.
Erling, the master high-kick-volley back-heeler (what sort of shot do you call that!? 🐙), leads the line.
Scott and Stefan are two reserve keepers who make up two of “just” seven players on the side. A recently-returned Nathan plus John are two defenders waiting for their opportunity to come on, while James, Ilkay and Nico make up the rest as midfield replacement options.
No reserve wingers or forwards there, not unless we raid the EDS who have an 11:30am away fixture at West Bromwich Albion this morning.
Notable absences:
- Kyle Walker – Out with a knee injury. Unknown return date.
- Rodri – Injured Anterior Cruciate Ligament and will be missing for the remainder of the season.
- Kevin De Bruyne – Continues to train as he recovers very slowly and very steadily indeed from a groin / hip / pelvic issue. Unknown return date.
- Jack Grealish – Injured. The nature of the injury is unclear but our manager informed the press staff on 23rd October that it would be around a week to 10-days before we see the England winger in action again.
- Jeremy Doku – Similarly, the nature of Jeremy’s medical issue has also not been made clear but on the same date, Pep did indicate that the Belgium winger would be missing through injury slightly longer than Jack.
- Oscar Bobb – Out injured with a fractured leg that he received in training. Update: Guardiola very recently commented on the Norwegian winger’s progress and the initial estimate of a November or December return has not only ‘gone out of the window’; it’s popped through the garden, out of the front gate, onto the main street and has walked to the edge of town. We are now told that it’ll be January…or possibly even February before we see the 21-year-old back on the pitch in a City shirt. 🙄
Huffff…that injury list is now looking quite long and who’d be a winger at City at the moment, hey? 😧
It was only in the summer that I was proclaiming on my blog what a strong wing department we had but then we sold both Joel Ndala and Micah Hamilton and just two months and three injuries later; we find ourselves practically relying on a 20-year-old wide man whilst asking midfields to play out of position on the opposite flank.
Do I agree with Pep’s (predicted) line-up?
Result?
Our visitors have their own absences too, with a number either ruled out through injury; having late fitness assessments or are suspended. However, I’ve had a quick look at their squad and they certainly have the numbers, at least, to be able to cope with large personnel shortages.
Now, here’s an opportunity to add to, what would be, only our 5th clean sheet in all competitions (14 matches) come Saturday tea time – Southampton have only managed to score 6 goals in 8 league outings so far this season. Surely, then, we can add to that rather dismal return of theirs this afternoon.
At the other end of the pitch, only Wolves have conceded more in the league and in their last three fixtures, the South coast side have leaked 3 goals in each match.
Yeah, of course, we could well be facing yet ANOTHER ‘two banks of five’ to break down but from what I’ve heard, their manager is unwavering in how he likes his side to play and, apparently, that’s just not his style; for better or for worse. By all accounts, some Southampton fans are losing patience with that philosophy since their promotion…
Whether it be a tight, frustrating affair or a slaughter; either way I’m going for a City win.
Last season’s, corresponding pre-match prediction and result:
Prediction: N/A
Result: N/A
Expected weather conditions during the game: Pretty decent for late October. No rain, quite a bit of sunshine and 13 to 14C is not bad at all – just a medium-warm coat should do it and a pair of shades might help. Enjoy… ⛅😎⚽🍺🥧
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| Solidarity |
As recently posted as a possibility; there will be no pre-match blog posting for our home Champions League game on Wednesday 23rd October.
…for us was the result when we visited Molineux last season. We also had no Rodri that day either and our midfield, particularly Kovacic and Nunes who was withdrawn at half time, had a 'horrible day at the office’ that Saturday afternoon.
However, that’s not the only time our hosts have delivered a so-called “shock” result against us in recent seasons and any Blue looking at their league position this time round and thinking that this game is an absolute shoo-in would be wise not to suggest it out loud…and certainly not within earshot of Pep.
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| Molineux |
(Number correct from the starting line-up in the last game: 9/11).
A very fluid 4-1-4-1 / 4-5-1 / 4-3-3 (occasional 3-6-1):
____________________Haaland____________________
Grealish_________________________________Savinho
_______________________________Foden___________
____________Silva_______________________________
_____________________Stones____________________
Gvardiol___________________________________Lewis
____________Dias_______________Akanji___________
____________________Ederson____________________
Subs: Carson, Ortega, Walker, Kovacic, McAtee, Gundogan, Nunes and Doku.
Ederson starts in net.
I’m going for a back 4, occasional 3, of Josko, Ruben, Manuel and Rico.
I think Pep might give John a go at the Rodri role on Sunday afternoon; with the England man dropping back to make a defensive 3 whenever Gvardiol and Lewis make inverted inroads.
Jack to ‘get the nod’ from his boss on the left, Savinho on the right with Bernardo and Phil in between.
Erling up front.
As appears customary at the moment with our manager, I’m going for just eight from a possible nine on the bench; with two keepers and no youth outfield players. Go figure…🤷♂️ Scott and Stefan are the two stoppers in question; Kyle is the only defender on the bench in my predicted matchday squad. Mateo, James, Ilkay and Matheus make up four midfielders on the side, while Jeremy is the only wide man in ‘the 9’.
Notable absences:
- Nathan Ake – Has only very recently resumed training with his teammates following a thigh injury but it was said of our Dutch international that he could travel but wouldn’t be fit to start. He may well be on the coach but I’m guessing he won’t even be on the bench – what would be the point of risking an appearance so soon?
- Rodri – Injured Anterior Cruciate Ligament and will be missing for the remainder of the season.
- Kevin De Bruyne – Similar to Nathan, Kevin is back with his mates on the training ground and continues his recovery from a groin / hip / pelvic issue. It sounds like he’s still a little behind Ake with his recovery, as he carefully manages his own body these days. At least he’s making progress. 👍
- Oscar Bobb – Out injured with a fractured leg that he received in training. Expected return is anywhere between mid-November and mid-December, going off the initial assessment / information released at the time. The more optimistic of those two timescales doesn’t now sound all that far off. 👍
Do I agree with Pep’s (predicted) line-up?
Result?
Well, I’ve warned against any City complacency either from the fans or, especially, the players and I stick by that. Plus, let’s not forget, this game follows an international break and I know the same applies to both teams…but I just don’t think we look good a lot of the time following these pesky breaks in domestic football.
All of that being said, our host really are having a dire start to the season, although our studious manager has warned that [Some of? All of?] their performance aren’t reflected by their results. I don’t know. Either way, L L D L L L L F9 A21 makes for horrible reading. They did beat Championship opposition 2-0 in the League Cup 2nd round but were then beaten 3-2 in the 3rd round by Premier League opponents.
I think it’s only fair to point out that after they have played us and then Brighton away, the team who knocked them out of the League Cup, they will have faced all of the current top seven sides in their opening nine league outings. Tough hand dealt indeed.
If we bring our ‘A game’, improve our defending and, indeed, don’t get sloppy / prepare well for fast counter attacks, then this is most definitely 3 points to be had. If we DON'T do all of those things then we could find ourselves kicking the ground in frustration, shaking our collective heads and wondering how the hell we missed an opportunity to keep pressure on those around us in the table.
With a fairly hefty sigh and fingers crossed, I’m going for us to turn up and do a professional job at Molineux. It’s a predicted City win from me.
Last season’s, corresponding pre-match prediction and result:
Prediction: Win
Result: Lost
(Pre-match blog posting from that game)
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| Solidarity |
…cityxtra, which was published on the BBC’s website on 8th October.
I’ve never done this before on my blog but I thought it was a good idea to share / forward this one in case anyone missed it and would be interested.
Why Rodri's injury could bring huge long-term gains for City
I never thought the serious injury sustained by Rodri could spark the possibility of a huge positive - but here we are.
In typical international break fashion, I could have gone down several routes for this week's piece.
I'm not a financial expert, nor am I an expert in legal proceedings or the law, and so I won't be commenting on the verdict in City's legal case against the Premier League's associated party transactions rules.
I also expect to be exhausting the transfer rumour mill for talking points in the coming months.
This week, therefore, brings this train of thought: could Rodri's absence actually become the reason why Pep Guardiola decides to extend his stay at Etihad Stadium beyond a decade?
Unless Guardiola does the unimaginable - or perhaps the imaginable given his remarkable abilities at reinventing a tactical system - and claims every piece of silverware without his Spanish metronome, he will surely want the opportunity to test his side at full strength one final time in the 2025-26 season, and possibly beyond.
As he said himself: "I'm part of this club, not just a manager, I LOVE this club, and always it will be that way."
So would Guardiola really leave City - a club he loves - with the task of bringing Rodri back to his exceptional heights, preparing for life without the likes of Kevin de Bruyne, Kyle Walker, Ilkay Gundogan and Bernardo Silva, and integrating a new head coach into the organisation... all in the same summer?
Of course not.
Regardless of success this season, I firmly believe Guardiola will want one last shot at ultimate cross-competition glory with a full-strength squad, and a fresh roster of talent to introduce into the next phase of post-Pep Manchester City.
A new contract, and one that will likely strike fear into the rest of the Premier League and world football, is surely only a matter of time.
Find more from Freddie Pye at City Xtra
Good stuff and well said, I think. 👍
Since that piece was written and published, Txiki Begiristain has announced that he will leave our club in the summer of 2025, having turned 60 last August…
