Manchester City hope to bounce back from successive stalemates when they entertain Brighton & Hove Albion at the Etihad Stadium.
The Cityzens have lost ground in the title race as frustrating draws with Sunderland and Chelsea mean they are now six points off Arsenal at the top of the table, but Pep Guardiola’s side, who are famously ruthless down the stretch, will still harbour hopes of toppling the Gunners.
Defensive injuries will make their life much more challenging, however, with Joško Gvardiol and Rúben Dias joining John Stones on the sidelines with lengthy injuries. Guardiola will be forced to reorganise his backline on Wednesday and rely on his array of sparkling forwards.
Here is how City could line up.
Man City Predicted Lineup vs. Brighton (4-2-3-1)
GK: Gianluigi Donnarumma—With City’s first-choice centre back partnership unavailable, Donnarumma will be anticipating an increased workload in the coming weeks and months.
RB: Matheus Nunes—Fabian Hürzeler has confirmed that Kaoru Mitoma is likely to start at the Etihad and Nunes will have the unenviable task of stifling the fleet-footed Japan international.
CB: Abdukodir Khusanov—Khusanov has not always convinced since arriving in Manchester but now faces an extended run in the team given City’s injury woes. They desperately need him to rise to the occasion.
CB: Nathan Aké—Aké boasts a much healthier reserve of experience than Khusanov and Guardiola will expect the Dutchman to lead a weakened rearguard with distinction.
LB: Nico O’Reilly—O’Reilly has been worked into the ground in recent weeks but the absence of Gvardiol and Rayan Aït-Nouri means there is no option but to start the youngster once again.
DM: Nico González—Having missed the Chelsea game through injury, Guardiola has suggested that González will be available against Brighton. In an attempt to manage Rodri’s minutes, the 24-year-old could return in midfield.
DM: Tijjani Reijnders—Reijnders scored a cracking goal against Chelsea to continue his impressive run of attacking form—although he remains 11 goals off his tally for Milan last season.
AM: Phil Foden—Foden has been quieter in recent weeks after a purple patch of goalscoring form and Guardiola will demand a return to such standards for his playmaking attacking midfielder.
RW: Rayan Cherki—Guardiola will be worried about overworking Cherki but the inventive Frenchman simply must start against Brighton. He can provide a definitive moment of inspiration when required.
ST: Erling Haaland—It’s rare that Haaland goes three matches without a goal in the Premier League and even less common for that streak to reach four games. He has scored six in six against Brighton.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Man City Predicted Lineup vs. Brighton: Injury Crisis Calls for Unfamiliar Defence.
