Torres starts, Aguero benched - Man City predicted line up vs West Brom

straight to your inboxEderson, Ferran Torres and Tommy Doyle are all missing from Manchester City's squad to face Chelsea in the Premier League, as Zack Steffen and Aleks Zinchenko start.City had already confirmed they would be without Kyle Walker and Gabriel Jesus on the back of their positive Covid-19 tests over Christmas, with three more unnamed players also confirmed to have tested positive as well of two staff members.

direct to your inboxGraeme Souness is convinced Manchester United and Manchester City will come up short in this season's race for the Premier League title. Souness believes his former club Liverpool will retain their crown this term.

straight to your inboxManchester City take on Chelsea on Sunday in a match that will be vital for both sides in keeping their Premier League title chances alive.Both teams currently sit on 26 points, though City have played two games less, and a win for either would move them to within four points of leaders Liverpool and Manchester United.But City are at a severe disadvantage as they will be without five players due to positive coronavirus tests as well as centre-back Eric Garcia who is out due

straight to your inboxPep Guardiola was encouraged by Sergio Aguero's latest cameo as the Manchester City striker fights his way back from injury.The last of Aguero's three starts this season came in October at West Ham when he was forced off with a hamstring issue, while the knee problem that kept him out before that has continued to sideline him since.

straight to your inboxFerran Torres has challenged his Manchester City teammates to continue their momentum after the 2-0 victory over Newcastle United on Boxing Day.The win marks only the second time this season that City have won three times in succession, after edging out Southampton and thrashing Arsenal earlier this week, and they move above Chelsea and Tottenham in the table.There won't be much time to celebrate, however, as the Blues will be back in action on Monday when they travel to

straight to your inboxPep Guardiola was thrilled with Manchester City's performance in their 2-0 win over Newcastle.

straight to your inboxIlkay Gundogan played down injury concerns after picking up a knock in Manchester City's Boxing Day victory over Newcastle United.Gundogan scored the opening goal as Pep Guardiola's men beat Newcastle 2-0 at the Etihad Stadium in their first game after Christmas.

straight to your inboxJamie Redknapp has warned Manchester City that they have to start planning for life after Sergio Aguero. The legendary City forward has been plagued by injuries so far this season, making just seven appearances in all competitions.

straight to your inboxThe 2020/21 campaign was never going to be an easy one for Manchester City – the fact pre-season training began just 16 days after their Champions League defeat to Lyon is often overlooked. Yet few would have envisioned Pep Guardiola’s side sitting ninth in the Premier League table heading into the Christmas period, although they do have a game in hand on seven of the sides above them.

straight to your inboxRodri became the first outfield player for Manchester City to pass 1,500 minutes played this season during the draw with West Bromwich Albion.Pep Guardiola has made a point in recent weeks of saying that his squad have to perform well every game if they are to keep their place in the team, with John Stones and Ruben Dias examples of individuals that have risen to Guardiola's challenge.Rodri, signed from Atletico last summer for what was then a club record fee of £62.8m, has

straight to your inboxPep Guardiola said that Manchester City cannot afford more setbacks like this if they are to have any hope of winning the Premier League title. The Blues headed into a home game with struggling West Bromwich Albion knowing that a win would take them to within three points of leaders Liverpool and Tottenham, but a poor collective performance saw them drop two more points as the newly-promoted side frustrated them.

direct to your inboxJohn Stones is not carrying an injury despite missing Manchester City's Premier League game with West Brom. The 26-year-old has fought his way back into the team after two years of injuries and personal issues preventing him from holding down a regular place, and started alongside Ruben Dias for the Manchester derby as they notched another clean sheet.

straight to your inboxJohn Stones is not in the squad for Manchester City's match against West Brom on Tuesday, though Phil Foden has returned to the starting XI.City will be looking to return to winning ways at the Etihad after they once again failed to string three victories together on Saturday after they drew in an extremely dull encounter with fierce rivals Manchester United.

straight to your inbox Pep Guardiola will make a late decision on Sergio Aguero's fitness for Manchester City's Premier League fixture with West Brom after the striker returned to training. Aguero came off the bench to score against Marseille in the Champions League last Wednesday, but he was suffering from gastroenteritis over the weekend which ruled him out of the derby with United at Old Trafford.

straight to your inboxManchester City will be looking to take advantage of Manchester United’s Champions League disappointment in today’s derby.United are reeling after they were knocked out of the competition in the group stages following their 3-2 defeat by RB Leipzig on Tuesday. By contrast, City breezed into the knockout stages of the Champions League with a 3-0 win over Marseille on Wednesday to top Group C.

direct to your inboxManchester United and Man City play each other on Saturday in the first Manchester derby of the season. With sixth-placed United sat one place and one point above City, both sides have had similar starts to the Premier League season, although the Reds suffered a blow in midweek as they were knocked out of the Champions League.

direct to your inboxJohn Stones looks set to start in the back four for Manchester City as they take on their cross-city rivals at Old Trafford on Saturday.The centre-back's recent renaissance has seen him come back into the favour of Pep Guardiola, and it seems that he'll be rewarded with a place in City's starting line-up against Manchester United, alongside Ruben Dias.Stones' return to form has been at the expense of Aymeric Laporte.

straight to your inbox every day for freeAnthony Martial is set to return to the starting XI for Saturday's derby clash between Manchester United and Manchester City.Martial was substituted during the second-half against West Ham and was absent from the match day squad for the mid-week defeat against RB Leipzig in the Champions League.Ole Gunnar Solskjaer confirmed the Frenchman would be involved in some capacity against Pep Guardiola's side at Old Trafford with Edinson Cavani facing a late