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How Manchester City could line up against Bournemouth

Ahead of Saturday's Premier League clash between Manchester City and Bournemouth, Sports Mole looks at how Pep Guardiola's could line up at the Etihad Stadium.

Manchester City head into their Premier League encounter with Bournemouth looking to extend their advantage at the top of the standings to five points.

Pep Guardiola's side play a day earlier than each of their main rivals for the top-flight crown, but that may only lead to the pressure increasing on Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspur, Chelsea and Arsenal.

City have put together a 14-match unbeaten run in all competitions, with 12 wins, 44 goals and 10 clean sheets all coming during that period.

Guardiola has a number of selection dilemmas ahead of Saturday's game, and here Sports Mole looks at how his team could line up at the Etihad Stadium.



MCYXI VS. BOU

Out: Benjamin Mendy (knee), Kevin De Bruyne (knee), Claudio Bravo (Achilles), Eliaquim Mangala (knee)
Doubtful: Bernardo Silva (knock), Ilkay Gundogan (foot), Gabriel Jesus (groin)

Ilkay Gundogan, Bernardo Silva and Gabriel Jesus all missed Tuesday's Champions League fixture in Lyon, but Guardiola expects to have each of the trio available to play some part of this weekend's encounter.

Guardiola could look to rotate some of his key men due to the club's upcoming schedule, and that may lead to Bernardo coming in for Raheem Sterling on the right flank.

Fabian Delph is a likely inclusion having started the game in France on the bench, but whether the England international starts at left-back or in midfield could depend on the fitness of Gundogan.

Nicolas Otamendi could return in the centre of the defence with Aymeric Laporte due a rest after already making 18 starts this season, while Danilo may get the nod over Kyle Walker at right-back.

The game is likely to come too soon for Kevin De Bruyne, with it having previously been reported that the Belgian playmaker is aiming to make his comeback from a knee injury ahead of next weekend's meeting with Chelsea.

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Written by
Darren Plant
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Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola pictured on September 29, 2018
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TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool14112129111835
2Chelsea1594235181731
3Arsenal1585229151429
4Manchester CityMan City158342721627
5Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest157441918125
6Aston Villa157442323025
7Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton156632522324
8Bournemouth157352320324
9Brentford157263128323
10Fulham156542220223
11Tottenham HotspurSpurs1562731191220
12Newcastle UnitedNewcastle155551921-220
13Manchester UnitedMan Utd155461918119
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham155372028-818
15Everton143561421-714
16Leicester CityLeicester153572130-914
17Crystal Palace152761420-613
18Ipswich TownIpswich151681427-139
19Wolverhampton WanderersWolves1523102338-159
20Southampton1512121131-205


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