How Manchester City should line up against West Ham in the Premier League
Manchester City host West Ham in their return to Premier League play at the London Stadium, with Pep Guardiola in charge once again.
Manchester City will be without three key players for the Premier League trip to West Ham on Saturday. John Stones and Jack Grealish remain absent with the injuries that kept them out of the international break, while Mateo Kovacic has picked up a back problem that meant he didn’t play for Croatia in the last fortnight.
Kevin De Bruyne remains a longer-term absentee. Pep Guardiola is back after missing two games to recover from back surgery, and he will have to shuffle his pack at the London Stadium against a West Ham team with 10 points from 12, just two behind leaders City.
Jeremy Doku could make his second start for the Blues, while new signing Matheus Nunes could also make his debut in Kovacic’s absence.
Jeremy Doku could make his second start for the Blues, while new signing Matheus Nunes could also make his debut in Kovacic’s absence.
Bajkowski, Simon
The Champions League is back, but the away game against West Ham will be more difficult and require more experience. While it makes sense to start Josko Gvardiol and Matheus Nunes in midweek, the safer bet in the Premier League is to stick with players who have been there for a longer period of time.
That means asking Bernardo Silva to play in that hybrid midfield role alongside Rodri in the absence of the injured Mateo Kovacic, while Phil Foden and Julian Alvarez can continue to show what they offer to the team ahead of them.
The one exception must be Jeremy Doku in place of the injured Jack Grealish; Doku began against Fulham and may be able to surprise West Ham with his directness. Behind him, Nathan Ake is a reliable option who can go inside as needed, while Kyle Walker can fill the space on the right.
Mr. Joe Bray
City have survived without Stones and Grealish, but the loss of Kovacic is the most significant of the three. Kalvin Phillips could play there, but it would be his highest profile game for City, and bringing in new acquisition Matheus Nunes would be a similar risk. Bernardo Silva appears to be the logical midfield replacement.
As a result, Phil Foden may return to his right-wing position, coming inside with Julian Alvarez, while Kyle Walker provides breadth. Jeremy Doku will almost certainly start on the left again, with the option of switching with Foden if things don’t go well, as they did against Fulham.
At the back, the defence picks itself again, with the only option being between Nathan Ake or Josko Gvardiol at left-back. If West Ham use their wingers, Ake might be a better pick in the one-on-one duels, than throwing Gvardiol in.
But with Jack Grealish out of action there are few candidates to be deployed on the left flank, so Foden will have to take his place. That means Bernardo Silva should come into the middle alongside Julian Alvarez with Jeremy Doku being deployed on the right.
With John Stones still injured as well, Manuel Akanji should continue in the heart of defence and stepping into midfield. Jokso Gvardiol, Ruben Dias and Kyle Walker should make up the rest of the back-line.
