Man City Vs A.F.C Bournemouth Lineups
Manchester City will be confident of ending their winless streak with a victory at Bournemouth. The champions thrashed the Cherries 4-0 at the Etihad Stadium earlier this season and have a perfect record against the south-coast club in the Premier League.
Pep Guardiola’s side hopes to close the gap to leaders Arsenal. Kevin De Bruyne and Aymeric Laporte missed out in midweek against RB Leipzig but should feature here.
Defenders
Manchester City will look to close the gap on Arsenal as they travel to the south coast to face Bournemouth. The champions have won all their previous league games against the Cherries, and Pep Guardiola is likely to stick with a similar team to that which defeated the hosts last weekend.
Due to illness, The Spaniard will likely be without John Stones and Aymeric Laporte, so either Phil Foden or Ilkay Gundogan will play as centre-back alongside Virgil Van Dijk. Both players are excellent defensively and have proved highly effective in their partnership this season.
City’s best goal scorer, Sergio Aguero, is also doubtful for the visit of the Cherries, but he could return to the starting lineup. Raheem Sterling and Gabriel Jesus will probably share the goalscoring duties in Aguero’s absence.
As for the Cherries, they are still without the injured Jefferson Lerma and Lewis Cook. The pair missed the 1-0 win over West Ham last weekend, and their absence may be enough to push Gary O’Neil into making changes.
Despite the injury crisis, Bournemouth should be able to field a full-strength side for this fixture. They are only one point above relegation zone rivals West Ham, and a win against the league leaders would give them some breathing space.
The Cherries have struggled to keep clean sheets away from home this season, but they hope to improve against a City team that has kept seven of their nine Premier League clean sheets on the road this term.
Bournemouth have lost their last two league matches and hopes to change that trend when they take on Manchester City at the Vitality Stadium on Saturday afternoon. The hosts are currently fifth in the Premier League table and have an impressive record against the top teams, winning all their league games against the top-six sides. The Bournemouth defence has been the weakest link in their season, and they will need to step up their game to avoid defeat against the Premier League leaders.
Midfielders
Manchester City’s defence was under the cosh for much of their last outing, and they will need to be at their best to prevent another costly blip in their title defence. Pep Guardiola may make one or two changes to the team that lost 2-0 to Arsenal, but he is likely to go with the same side as he did for their 4-0 thrashing of Bournemouth in August.
The visitors are without defender Ryan Fredericks and midfielder Joe Rothwell, but new signings defender Marcos Senesi and winger Kieffer Moore could be included in the starting lineup. New City goalkeeper Ederson could also start instead of Aymeric Laporte, who remains out with a calf injury.
Gary O’Neil will have many questions to answer about his side’s performance against Arsenal, and they cannot afford to make any more mistakes in this fixture. The Cherries are currently seventh in the table and need to win more games to keep their hopes of qualifying for the top four alive.
City have never lost to Bournemouth in the Premier League and are unbeaten in their past 11 meetings with the defending champions. Pep Guardiola will not let the chasm between his club and the Cherries grow any larger than it already has to be.
In the midfield, Claude Puel will have to work out how to stop the attacking prowess of City’s young players. In attack, Raheem Sterling and Bernardo Silva will look to continue their fine starts to the season and are a threat whenever they get the ball.
In midfield, the pair will be supported by Hamed Traore and Dominik Solanke, who will look to break their long goalscoring droughts. The young pair will be tasked with controlling the game in possession and stopping City from creating space in behind. Jaidon Anthony will be expected to reprise his role on the left, while Hamed Ouattara will remain far forward down the right. He is a dangerous creator of set-pieces and will give City’s defence problems.
Forwards
The Cherries hope to improve their defensive record, which is currently sitting at just two clean sheets in the Premier League this season. This should help them keep up with the pack for the top four race. However, they do have some injury concerns ahead of this game, as midfielder David Brooks is still sidelined with a knee problem. Full-back Illia Zabarnyi is expected to miss out with a minor ankle injury. Both players could return for this match and boost the team’s chances of winning.
Manchester City are favourites to win this match, but the away team will give them a run for their money. Pep Guardiola will likely make some changes from the 2-1 win over Villa last weekend, with Riyad Mahrez boosted by his good form. Norwegian striker Erling Haaland will also start as he makes his home debut for the club.
The hosts dominated the first half but could not find a way through a stubborn Bournemouth defence. The Cherries’ keeper made several saves to prevent City from scoring but could not stop Charlie Daniels’s stunning strike.
After the break, City struggled to maintain their high tempo after the break but still looked dangerous on the counter. Phil Foden had an effort deflected wide and was also unlucky not to score after a clever run and pass from Ilkay Gundogan.
City’s dominance eventually paid off after 34 minutes when a neat touch from Haaland set up De Bruyne for his second of the afternoon. The playmaker then fired a superb outside-of-the-boot shot past Travers.
Defending with ten men was not ideal for the visitors, but they managed to hold firm for most of the second half and had a few chances. Jermain Defoe had a header saved, and Ryan Fraser saw his shot blocked, but they did not allow City to dominate the game.
The Cherries have lost their last three games and are bottom of the table. They must turn things around quickly and hope that Arsenal loses on Sunday.
Goalscorers
Manchester City hopes to bounce back from a disappointing draw at Forest by putting a hurting Bournemouth team on the back foot. The defending Premier League champions are second in the table, and a loss at the Cherries could leave them three points behind Arsenal. The good news for City is that they have a strong record against the Cherries at home and have won both meetings between the two sides this season.
Pep Guardiola rested a few players in the midweek Champions League match against RB Leipzig, and the likes of Nicolas Otamendi, Fernandinho, Raheem Sterling, Sergio Aguero, and David Silva should be fit to start here. Ederson, Vincent Kompany and Fabian Delph will also be expected to feature.
Bournemouth will be without Lewis Cook and David Brooks, with other injury concerns for the visitors. Jordan Zemura, Lloyd Kelly, Junior Stanislas and Illia Zabarnyi could all miss out. However, the club will be hopeful that Marcus Tavernier will be available to face City.
The hosts will likely continue to operate in a 4-4-2 formation. Jefferson Lerma and Philip Billing will pair up at full-back, while wingers Romeo Lavia and James Ward-Prowse will likely feature. The central pairing of Haaland and Foden should also be a guaranteed starter for the Cherries.
It took just 10 minutes for the home side to take the lead as Gundogan set up Haaland to drill a low finish past Travers. The tempo remained high as the half progressed, and it was no surprise when City went 2-0 up as De Bruyne took on the Bournemouth defence and delivered a fine finish with his left boot.
City dominated possession throughout the second half and had more chances to score. The visitors defended well, and neither side had many clear-cut chances. However, the home side had better chances as De Bruyne missed an open goal and hit the bar with another effort.
In the dying stages, Foden had a late chance to make it four, but his shot from a tight angle was blocked on the line.
