Manchester City will host newly promoted Ipswich Town at the Etihad Stadium on August 24, 15:00 BST. Man City are the favourites to win and will be confident after an assured 2-0 victory against Chelsea in London a week ago. Ipswich will be searching for their first points of the season after losing at home to Liverpool despite a spirited performance.
Team News
Rodri will be expected to be part of the squad after being left out of the previous game. However, Kovacic will be expected to start after impressing against Chelsea. Rodri will likely come on as a substitute in the second half.
Phil Foden will be looking to start after coming on as a half time substitute against Chelsea. While Kyle Walker is fit, Pep Guardiola may continue to deploy the impressive Rico Lewis at right back.
Oscar Bobb is injured and will definitely miss the game. Additionally, Savinho is a doubt after being taken off at half time.
Ipswich will likely be without George Hirst, Harry Clarke and Nathan Broadhead.
Man City vs Ipswich – Match Preview
While Ipswich did not necessarily play badly against Liverpool, they were simply outclassed by a superior opponent. This will likely be the same story with City, arguably the best team in the world currently.
Scott McKenna guided the Tractor Boys to consecutive promotions and will look to make life difficult for The Cityzens. However, with a near full strength team, Guardiola’s men should have enough quality to comfortably take the three points.
Former City players Liam Delap and Kalvin Phillips will likely be in the starting lineup against City, with Phillips especially determined to prove his worth to Guardiola.
Manchester City vs Ipswich – Predicted Starting Lineups
Man City are expected to field a lineup similar to the one they used against Chelsea. Kovacic is likely to start as the holding midfielder despite Rodri’s inclusion in the squad. Guardiola will probably keep Lewis as the right back and start Foden on the wing.
Man City predicted lineup vs Ipswich: Ederson; Lewis, Akanji, Dias, Gvardiol; Kovacic, De Bruyne, Silva; Doku, Foden; Haaland.
