MX23RW : Tuesday, May 14 16:22:21| >> :120:10427:10427:
[monks data]
Aston Villa logo
Premier League | Gameweek 32
Apr 21, 2021 at 8.15pm UK
Villa Park
Manchester City logo

Aston Villa
1 - 2
Man City

McGinn (1')
Cash (54')
Cash (57')
FT(HT: 1-2)
Foden (22'), Rodri (40')
Gundogan (44')
Stones (44')

How Manchester City could line up against Aston Villa

How Manchester City could line up against Aston Villa
© Reuters
Sports Mole takes an in-depth look at how Manchester City could line up for Wednesday's Premier League clash with Aston Villa.

Manchester City have been rocked by the news that Kevin De Bruyne will miss Wednesday's trip to Aston Villa after the midfielder sustained a foot and ankle injury in Saturday's 1-0 defeat to Chelsea in the FA Cup semi-final at Wembley.

The Belgium midfielder limped off to be replaced by Phil Foden after only 48 minutes, with Hakim Ziyech scoring the decisive goal of the game only seven minutes later, as City's dreams of winning a historic quadruple this season came to a crashing end.

City have definitively ruled De Bruyne out of featuring against Villa in the Premier League on Wednesday, but the club have remained tight-lipped regarding any timeframe on his expected return date to first-team action.

With an EFL Cup final against Tottenham Hotspur and a Champions League semi-final first leg away to Paris Saint-Germain both forthcoming in the next week, though, the Citizens look set to be deprived of their best player for some incredibly important matches.

However, few squads in Europe can compare with the strength in depth which Pep Guardiola has at his disposal, with the 50-year-old expected to make eight changes to his first XI from the one which was deservedly beaten by Chelsea at the weekend.

Ederson, Kyle Walker, John Stones, Oleksandr Zinchenko, Ilkay Gundogan, Foden, Riyad Mahrez and Bernardo Silva were all named among the substitutes at Wembley and are expected to come back into the side against Villa.

Indeed, having named a weakened side in the home defeat to Leeds United last time out in the Premier League, Guardiola is unlikely to take any more risks in that regard, especially with rivals Manchester United having closed the gap at the top of the table to eight points after dispatching Burnley 3-1 on Sunday.

Sergio Aguero may miss out again having been left out of the last two matchday squads due to what Guardiola described as a "number of niggles," so Gabriel Jesus is likely to lead the line once again as a more orthodox striker, with Foden and Mahrez preferred on the flanks to an out-of-sorts Raheem Sterling.

Man City possible starting lineup: Ederson; Walker, Stones, Dias, Zinchenko; Silva, Rodri, Gundogan; Mahrez, Jesus, Foden

> Click here to see how Aston Villa could line up for this contest

ID:443829:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:collect4071:No Data Analysis info
Game History

How you voted: Aston Villa vs Man City

Aston Villa
20.2%
Draw
10.3%
Manchester City
69.6%
263
Collect / Create New Data
Share this article now:
Manchester City's Kevin De Bruyne pictured in action against Chelsea in the FA Cup on April 17, 2021
Read Next:
Man City's Kevin De Bruyne ruled out of Aston Villa clash
>
Sports Mole Logo
Enter your email address to subscribe to Sports Mole's free match previews newsletter! Updates are sent twice a week.
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Arsenal37275589286186
2Manchester CityMan City36267391335885
3Liverpool372310484414379
4Aston Villa37208976562068
5Tottenham HotspurSpurs361961171591263
6Newcastle UnitedNewcastle361761379572257
7Chelsea361691173611257
8Manchester UnitedMan Utd36166145256-454
9West Ham UnitedWest Ham371410135971-1252
10Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton361212125458-448
11Bournemouth37139155365-1248
12Crystal Palace371210155258-646
13Wolverhampton WanderersWolves37137175063-1346
14Fulham37128175159-844
15Everton37139153949-1040
16Brentford37109185461-739
17Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest3789204766-1929
18Luton TownLuton3768235081-3126
RBurnley3759234076-3624
RSheffield UnitedSheff Utd37372735101-6616


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!