Today’s game against Aston Villa is crucial for Pep Guardiola and his team staying in the title race. After the 0-0 draw against Arsenal on the weekend, City trail the top spot by 3 points, they cannot afford to drop any points in their upcoming games.
After their shocking performance in the reverse fixture earlier in the season where the treble winners only registered 2 shots in the 90 minutes, their availability in players has changed with Rodri and Kevin De Bruyne are officially available for picking which they weren’t earlier in the season.
The positive for Manchester City is that the game is set at the Etihad Stadium with Rodri returning to the lineup which only sets up for success after 39 games unbeaten at the Etihad and now 63 matches unbeaten for Rodri.
With certain injuries still causing harm to the full XI, it is expected that City will lineup with a weaker side than what they would hope for in the run in to the end of the season.
Lineup Prediction
With the injuries to Kyle Walker and John Stones, it is expected that Rico Lewis will slot into the right back position where he plays the inverted right back role perfectly for the team allowing the defenders to just focus on defending.
The pace of Jeremy Doku and the close control dribbling of Jack Grealish will not be as effective as usual against this set defence of Villa since the introduction of Pau Torres and Eric Konsa in their back line this season.
Injuries
Kyle Walker, Nathan Ake and John Stones were marked out of the Arsenal tie due to injury, with Ake’s injury coming during the game between the title contenders possibly leaving him out of contention for selection as the tie between City and Real Madrid is coming up soon which is very crucial to their chances of a double treble.
The loss of Kyle Walker could cause problems for City as the main striking force in Villa’s attack is their burning pace between Moussa Diaby and Leon Bailey. With Ollie Watkins picking up an injury in their 2-0 victory over Wolves, their scoring prowess has taken a hit and can give Manchester City some hope pre-game.
The game is set to play at 20:15 this evening streamed on Sky Sports from the Etihad Stadium. The game is crucial for Manchester City as a MUST-WIN game.
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