Manchester City fans were a little taken aback by some of the names left out for their trip to Norwich.
City have the chance to extend their lead at the top of the Premier League this evening as they take on a Norwich side battling for their lives at the bottom of the table.
With Liverpool playing on Sunday against Burnley, Pep Guardiola’s side have the chance to take their lead over their nearest rivals back up to 12 points.
And given their unbeaten run in the league, they’ll be full expected to take all three points at Carrow Road.
Norwich though have enjoyed a slight resurgence in recent games, with Dean Smith’s side taking seven points from their last three games to give them more hope in their battle against relegation.
With that in mind, Guardiola has named his team to take on the Canaries, with five changes made as Kyle Walker, Nathan Ake, Oleksandr Zinchenko, Fernandinho and Ilkay Gundogan come in for John Stones, Aymeric Laporte, Joao Cancelo, Kevin De Bruyne and Rodri.
There was no place in the squad for Jack Grealish, with City confirming he and Gabriel Jesus had been unable to travel, although City fans were a little more interested in some of the names that had been dropped to the bench.
Despite their relative positions in the table, City will know all-too well about the potential banana skin that Norwich pose.
The visitors will be aiming to gain some revenge for their last visit to Carrow Road, when they lost 3-2 in 2019 as they were dealt a big blow early on in their title defence that season.
Guardiola will be eager to avoid another such slip-up as his side look to strengthen their hold at the top of the Premier League this evening.
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