Predicted Starting Line-Up: Southampton vs Manchester City (Premier League) | OneFootball

Manchester City travel south to take on already-relegated Southampton this weekend in the hope of securing a spot in next season’s UEFA Champions League.

The most recent duel between the Cityzens and the Saints was back in October; a 1-0 win at the Etihad Stadium when Erling Haaland secured all three points with a first-half header. This was notably Manchester City’s last win before a crisis that saw the club win two of 14 matches.

In their most recent outing, it was Kevin De Bruyne who scored the winner for Manchester City as Pep Guardiolas’s men beat Wolves 1-0 at home, with much of the game marked by a fan protest against the club’s ongoing controversial ticket policy.

Nathan Aké, Rodri and Oscar Bobb are all back in first-team training following recent injury problems, however all three are expected to remain unavailable to feature in the matchday squad as Pep Guardiola confirmed to the media on Friday afternoon.

After being left on the bench against Wolves last week, Erling Haaland is now fit and ready to start against Southampton this weekend, Pep Guardiola has revealed. Thus the only injured player in the group is centre-back, John Stones.

As this is a must-win match in the battle for the Premier League’s top-five places, let’s see how the Catalan tactician of the Etihad Stadium may choose his Manchester City line-up on Saturday afternoon!

Predicted XI

Even though Ederson may be living his last days in a Manchester City shirt following a sensational career with the club, he is still the number one between the posts and should be in goal once again.

Matheus Nunes has seemingly found his place in the starting line-up albeit out of position, and with the Portuguese international in a good moment as a right-back, this likely makes him an easy pick this weekend.

The partnership of Rúben Dias and Josko Guardiola is rock-solid at the heart of Manchester City’s defence, with three clean sheets in the past four matches and should maintain their place commanding the rearguard once again.

Academy graduate Nico O’Reilly has seemingly changed the way the entire team behaves on the pitch. The quality from the youngster – praised by Pep Guardiola during his most-recent press conference – might make him a starter once again.

Arguably now in his best form since arriving from Chelsea in the summer of 2023, Mateo Kovacic – whose appearances were also highlighted by Guardiola – is one of the reasons why the midfield has improved so much lately. The Croatian is in line to be selected this weekend.

Kevin De Bruyne’s final games as a Manchester City club legend are now firmly upon us and the Belgian international should have further chance of playing in a farewell tour – especially given his incredible recent shape.

The rise of Bernardo Silva late this season is also not spoken highly enough among supporters of the club largely due to difficulties earlier in the campaign. The iconic number 20 can be everywhere on the pitch through his energy, and should do so once more.

Savinho may make his return to the starting line-up this weekend and it is worth noting that the Brazilian has 10 assists across all competitions to date – the most by a Manchester City player so far in the 2024/25 campaign.

Back from injury and available once again, perhaps at the perfect time given the magnitude of upcoming contests, Erling Haaland could start for the first time since playing against Bournemouth in the FA Cup quarter-finals towards the end of March.

In need of more game time himself, Jeremy Doku is always threatening on the ball for Manchester City and he is likely to have yet another golden – and deserved – chance to impress Pep Guardiola.

With this tactical set-up, Manchester City would be expected to attack using a 2-3-5 formation, while defending in a classic 4-4-2, as we have seen frequently from Pep Guardiola’s sides.

Starting XI: Ederson; Nunes, Dias, Gvardiol, O’Reilly; Kovacic, De Bruyne, Bernardo; Savinho, Haaland, Doku.

Substitutes: Ortega Moreno, Lewis, Khusanov, Akanji, Nico, Gundogan, Foden, Grealish, Marmoush.