Manchester City will be hoping to keep their place at the top of the Premier League on Saturday when they travel to Nottingham Forest.
City moved to the summit of the league on Wednesday night with a 3-1 victory over Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium. Kevin De Bruyne, Jack Grealish and Erling Haaland were all on the scoresheet in what ended up being a comfortable evening for the Blues in the end.
With the Gunners playing in the early kick-off this weekend, City know that they may need to be victorious in the East Midlands to retain their place at the top come 5pm tomorrow. Forest have an injury crisis in their ranks but in front of their own fans they will provide a threat, so here is how MEN Sport thinks the Blues will line up to counter Steve Cooper's side.
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Goalkeeper - Ederson
The City goalkeeper put in a relatively good display at Arsenal and dealt with a raucous home crowd well throughout. Despite being a harsh decision, his challenge on Eddie Nketiah for the Gunners' penalty was clumsy but that does not stop him from taking his place in goal.
Defenders - Kyle Walker, Ruben Dias, Manuel Akanji, Nathan Ake
Pep Guardiola's experiment with Bernardo Silva at left-back was working well until it was not. His booking was deserved and it was not until Akanji came on in the second half that City retook control of the match.
For that reason, it looks likely that the Blues will start with their defence that ended the match in North London with Ake moving over to the left-back role.
Midfielders - Rodri, Kevin De Bruyne, Bernardo Silva
De Bruyne is undroppable after yet another stunning performance for the Blues. The Belgian has now well and truly made his point that he cannot be left out of this squad.
Bernardo moving back into the midfield where he is most comfortable would see Ilkay Gundogan drop to the bench but with the fixtures coming thick and fast, the German could do with a break ahead of the Champions League.
Forwards - Riyad Mahrez, Erling Haaland, Jack Grealish
City's front three automatically picks itself at the moment. Haaland ending his 'goal drought' on Wednesday night was inevitable and restores that confidence if he needs it.
Grealish, meanwhile, has been a revelation for Guardiola in recent matches and should deservedly keep his place. Mahrez was frustrated at being substituted in midweek but has plenty of credit in the bank to deserve another start.
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