Man City visit Nottingham Forest on return from their Christmas holiday, but Pep Guardiola is not expected to make wholesale changes.
The Spaniard seems to have settled on a happy formula in recent weeks. He made no changes to his starting lineup for his last two Premier League matches, which wrought a pair of wins over West Ham and Crystal Palace by a combined score of 6-0.
As such, shuffling does not seem likely as he visits Forest, who sit precariously close to the relegation zone after being beaten by Fulham last time out.
Guardiola will be unable to call upon Rayan Ait-Nouri or Omar Marmoush as they represent their nations at AFCON.
He may, however, welcome John Stones back into the side. The England international has been out with a thigh injury for a few weeks and has been tipped to return at the City Ground.
Should he be passed fit, it seems unlikely that he would start in what seems set to be a physical contest.
Beyond Stones’ recovery, there have been few changes to City’s injury situation. Rodri remains absent with a hamstring problem, while Oscar Bobb, Mateo Kovacic, and Jeremy Doku join him in the physio’s room.
With so many first-team players out, Guardiola has little incentive to deviate from his winning formula.
Erling Haaland remains in fine form with six goals in his last five, and will remain up top. Behind him, Rayan Cherki and Phil Foden have continued their impressive partnership, and no change is expected.
Elsewhere, options for defensive changes are thin on the ground. Abdukodir Khusanov could come in, but Guardiola will likely stick with Ruben Dias and Josko Gvardiol for this match. Their experience should prove valuable against a direct Forest side.
Predicted Man City XI (4-3-2-1): Donnarumma; Nunes, Dias, Gvardiol, O’Reilly; Silva, Gonzalez, Reijnders; Cherki, Foden; Haaland
Doubts: Stones
Injured: Kovacic, Rodri, Doku, Bobb
Unavailable: Ait-Nouri, Marmoush
Time and date: 12.30pm GMT on Saturday, December 27, 2025
Venue: City Ground
How to watch: TNT Sports 1
