Date: Sunday 15th December, 2024
Time: 5:30 pm
Stadium Etihad Stadium
Referee Anthony Taylor (England)
Goal Scorer:
Team News
Manchester City
Controversially taking the walk of shame after scoring a terrific equaliser against Crystal Palace, City defender Rico Lewis will miss the Manchester derby through suspension and will be one of six Citizens to sit out the visit of the Red Devils.
Rodri (ACL), Oscar Bobb (leg) and Nathan Ake (thigh) will not be seen until 2025, and Sunday's blockbuster is also set to come too soon for Manuel Akanji (unspecified) and John Stones (foot), potentially forcing Guardiola to introduce an inexperienced academy graduate in defence.
Either Jahmai Simpson-Pusey - at centre-back - or Josh Wilson-Esbrand - at left-back - should fill the Lewis void in a ravaged rearguard, but Guardiola has also suggested that he could experiment with playing some players out of position or switching to a three-man backline with wing-backs.
In a rare piece of positive injury news, Mateo Kovacic was back on the bench in midweek and should be in contention to come into the midfield.
Manchester City possible starting lineup:
Ederson; Walker, Dias, Simpson-Pusey, Gvardiol; De Bruyne, Kovacic; Silva, Foden, Nunes; Haaland
Manchester United
In contrast, the Man United infirmary is virtually empty barring the perpetually injured Luke Shaw, who recently suffered a setback in his recovery from a calf concern; Jonny Evans is training and in with a good chance of making the squad on Sunday.
Amorim's alterations have been grabbing headlines during his early days in charge of the club, and the Portuguese will no doubt make sweeping changes for derby day too, which spells danger for Joshua Zirkzee and Marcus Rashford after their tepid displays in midweek.
Indeed, two of Hojlund, Mason Mount and Alejandro Garnacho - who could cause an off-colour Kyle Walker all sorts of problems - should come into the attacking trident, and it will be fascinating to see whether Amorim deems Leny Yoro ready for a fixture of such magnitude.
Manchester United possible starting lineup:
Onana; Mazraoui, De Ligt, Martinez; Diallo, Ugarte, Mainoo, Dalot; Fernandes, Garnacho; Hojlund
Prediction: Manchester City 3-2 Manchester United
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