Pep Guardiola's pressing concern isn't the visit of Liverpool next week - it's being able to field a team.
The Manchester City boss has been watching the bulk of his squad at the World Cup in Qatar over the past month and very few have returned thus far. The English champions, who won the EFL Cup for four straight years until they were dethroned last term, will welcome a Reds team who arrive as holders.
Both sides have been dealing with makeshift squads over the last month, albeit Liverpool were fortunate enough to have several of their big names remain on Merseyside. They saw off AC Milan in a friendly on Saturday that featured the likes of Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino, Thiago and Joel Matip in the starting XI.
