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Manchester Evening News
Manchester Evening News
Sport
Alex Brotherton

'I pray it's just tactical' - Man City fans react to team news as Bernardo Silva absent again

Pep Guardiola has made one change to the Manchester City line-up for their first home game of the new Premier League season.

City take on newly promoted Bournemouth at the Etihad Stadium today, and Guardiola has selected 10 of the 11 players that saw off West Ham 2-0 at the London Stadium six days ago. Jack Grealish, who played the full 90 minutes against West Ham, is replaced by Riyad Mahrez.

Summer signing Erling Haaland starts up front again after scoring a brace on his Premier League debut, and will be looking to add to his tally against a side that have won none of their 16 previous league meetings with City.

READ MORE: Inside the training camp where first team trio stunned Man City academy

Bernardo Silva, who is still being linked with a move to Barcelona despite City insisting that they have received no offers, again starts among the substitutes.

Aymeric Laporte remains unavailable as he continues to recover from knee surgery, while Kalvin Phillips and Cole Palmer sit this one out after Guardiola confirmed that they were suffering from 'niggles' and a foot injury respectively.

The City XI in full is: Ederson; Walker, Dias, Ake, Cancelo; Rodri, De Bruyne, Gundogan; Mahrez, Haaland, Foden.

Here's what City fans on Twitter make of the XI Guardiola has selected today:

@bobskino: City Win, Ederson clean sheet, Haaland hat trick and De Bruyne assists is all i ask for pls

@19Alvarez_: Give Julian [Alvarez] a chance on the right man

@ErlingRoIe: Pep punishing Bernardo

@YKMCFC: Bernardo on the bench again damn I pray it's just a tactical decision

@ColePalmer: Ake deserves to start

@Malosha_Esq: Now that Mahrez & Haaland are in the same starting team, interesting to see who is going to take the Pens

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