Preview: K-League All Stars vs. Man City - prediction, team news, lineups

Manchester City will continue their preparations for the 2026-27 campaign with a pre-season friendly against K-League All Stars on Wednesday.

The Citizens, who played out a 1-1 draw with Inter Milan in their opening pre-season fixture on August 1, will begin their new season in the Community Shield against Arsenal on August 16.

Match preview

Man City had Enzo Maresca at the helm for the first time on Saturday, with the Citizens drawing 1-1 with Inter in their opening pre-season friendly of the summer before losing on penalties.

The Manchester outfit will now tackle K-League All Stars and Atletico Madrid in friendlies before taking on Arsenal in the Community Shield on August 16.

Man City's opening match of the new Premier League is against Bournemouth at the Etihad Stadium on August 23, before ending the month away to Crystal Palace.

Maresca's team have made four first-team signings this summer, with the standout arrival being Elliot Anderson from Nottingham Forest, and it will be fascinating to see how the England international fits into the Man City side.

The Citizens have also had some notable first-team exits, with John Stones, Bernardo Silva and Nathan Ake among those moving on.

© Iconsport / PA Images

K-League All Stars will be Man City's opponents on Wednesday, and it will be a test for the English club considering that it will be the best players from the K-League.

Chung Jung-yong, who is the manager of current champions Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors, will lead the team alongside Jeong Kyung-ho - the head coach of Gangwon FC.

K-League All Stars have had some notable friendlies in recent years, taking on Newcastle United last summer, recording a 1-0 victory over the Magpies.

The team also tackled Tottenham Hotspur in the summer of 2024, suffering a 4-3 defeat, but they beat Atletico Madrid 3-2 the year before.

K-League All Stars have also faced Barcelona and Juventus in pre-season friendlies, and it will be very interesting to see how the team matches up to Man City.

Man City pre-season form:

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Team News

© Imago / Pro Sports Images

Yazan Al-Arab, who played for Jordan at the 2026 World Cup, will be among the star names in the K-League All Stars squad for the clash with Man City.

FC Seoul's Son Jeong-beom - a highly-rated 18-year-old - will also feature, in addition to a familiar face in the shape of Ki Sung-yueng, who previously played in the Premier League for Swansea City, Sunderland and Newcastle United.

As for Man City, Rodri remains unavailable for selection, with the midfielder, who is being linked with a move to Real Madrid, having a minor back operation after helping Spain to win the 2026 World Cup.

Erling Haaland, Rayan Cherki, Marc Guehi, Elliot Anderson, James Trafford and Nico O'Reilly will also be notable absentees for Maresca's side in this match.

However, the Citizens can still call upon plenty of quality, with Josko Gvardiol, Savinho, Phil Foden and Antoine Semenyo set to be among the starters for the Manchester team.

K-League All Stars possible starting lineup:

Hyeon-woo; Young-gwon, Jin-seop, Joo-sung, Tae-hwan; Sung-yeung, Soon-min, Bojanic; Farias, Cesinha, Mota

Man City possible starting lineup:

Donnarumma; Lewis, Khusanov, Gvardiol, Mfuni; Kovacic, Reijnders; Savinho, Foden, Semenyo; Mubama

We say: K-League All Stars 1-2 Man City

This is shaping up to be a testing match for Man City, which is what the Citizens will want at this stage of their pre-season, and we are only picking a narrow win for Maresca's team.