Manchester City face a challenging start to their Premier League campaign as they take on Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in their season opener.
Jack Grealish remains a significant doubt for the match and shouldn’t be risked due to his injury concerns. After being left out of England’s Euro 2024 squad, Grealish was eager to make a statement and had featured in every pre-season game for City. Unfortunately, a minor injury sustained before last week’s Community Shield against Manchester United sidelined him for the Wembley clash, and Pep Guardiola admitted there’s no certainty that Grealish will be ready for Sunday’s showdown at Chelsea.
Despite the injury and fitness challenges plaguing the squad, Guardiola has a wealth of options at his disposal and should avoid rushing Grealish back into action. One unexpected setback was Oscar Bobb’s freak injury this week, ruling him out of the season opener. This may pave the way for City’s new signing, Savinho, to make his full debut.
The £33 million Brazilian forward impressed after coming off the bench at Wembley and could be handed a starting role at Stamford Bridge in light of the absences of more senior players. With Grealish unlikely to be fit, Jeremy Doku is expected to continue on the left wing. Although there’s a temptation to deploy Phil Foden, who returned to training this week, Guardiola may choose to gradually ease him back into the lineup.
In midfield, Guardiola fielded Mateo Kovacic and Nico O’Reilly in the Community Shield. With Rodri only rejoining training on Wednesday, he is unlikely to start, meaning Kovacic will play a key role in the midfield. He will likely be supported by Bernardo Silva, who found the back of the net at Wembley, while Kevin De Bruyne, another substitute last weekend, is set to operate in the number 10 role, feeding Erling Haaland.
Defensively, Ruben Dias and Manuel Akanji were the starting center-backs against United and are expected to maintain their partnership against Chelsea. On the left side, Nathan Ake could contend with Josko Gvardiol for the starting spot, though Gvardiol’s superior fitness might give him the edge.
The right-back position presents a choice between Rico Lewis and Kyle Walker. While Walker has completed a week of training, Lewis was one of the standout performers during pre-season and deserves to retain his place in the starting XI. His inclusion would also benefit Kovacic, as Lewis can invert into a defensive midfield role when needed.
Predicted Manchester City XI vs Chelsea: Ederson; Lewis, Akanji, Dias, Gvardiol; Kovacic, Bernardo, De Bruyne; Doku, Savinho, Haaland.
