Gabriel Jesus Returns in Attack, Ruben Dias and John Stones to Start Again - Predicted Team: Man City vs West Ham (Premier League)

Pep Guardiola’s men left everyone in awe with a near-perfect performance on the Etihad pitch against an all-star Paris Saint-Germain side that featured a 2-1 victory on matchday five of the Champions League group stage.

With knock-out stage qualification and the top spot in Group A now confirmed for the Blues, they will turn all attention to the Premier League game against West Ham on matchday 13 on Sunday afternoon.

Following the Carabao Cup fourth round penalty shoot-out loss against West Ham back in October, Manchester City will be determined to avenge their League Cup exit tomorrow.

Meanwhile, West Ham have had an extremely impressive season so far, both in England and in Europe. The Hammers have failed to win only one of their last five Premier League games and find themselves in fourth after 12 games.

Ahead of the game, here is how we expect City to line up against the Hammers.

Team News

Kevin De Bruyne, who tested positive for COVID-19 whilst on international duty, is still unavailable for this game due to a mandatory quarantine and recovery period.

Jack Grealish and Phil Foden's respective injuries have also progressed well, as both Englishmen have started training individually. However, they are still not fully fit and are likely to be unavailable for selection this weekend.

Ferran Torres, who is headlining the news around Manchester City lately given his links to FC Barcelona, is still following his rehabilitation program and will be missing for a long time.

Predicted Team

Ederson, who has seven clean sheets in the Premier League so far this season, will certainly retain his spot in between the sticks for Manchester City on Sunday afternoon.

The centre back pairing of Ruben Dias and John Stones is expected to start once again at the Etihad, following a combined monumental defensive effort in the midweek Champions League fixture against a celebrity PSG front three.

Kyle Walker who has earned the 'Mr Dependable' tag owing to his consistently solid performances over the past few seasons, once again handled the electric duo of Neymar and Kylian Mbappe with ease - for the fourth time in 2021. The Englishman has made himself undroppable.

Meanwhile, Joao Cancelo has earned plaudits for his revolutionary performances on the left side. The Portugal international has been sensational going forward and has also improved immensely on a defensive front. City will surely need one of Cancelo’s mindboggling performances against a solid West Ham.

Pep Guardiola will once again turn to Rodrigo for a perfect regista performance against the Hammers. The Spaniard has proven his doubters wrong with a brilliant season so far, and Manchester City fans have finally begun to believe in Rodri as Fernandinho’s perfect successor.

Elsewhere in Manchester City’s midfield, the technically gifted duo of Bernardo Silva and Ilkay Gundogan are expected to start off the back of a dominant display against the Parisians on Wednesday night.

Raheem Sterling is likely to start this game on the left after a string of impressive performances. The English winger has three goals in his last three outings and seems to be regaining his form with consistent game time.

We expect Riyad Mahrez to start on his usual right-wing position on Sunday afternoon.

Gabriel Jesus, who scored the winner for Manchester City in the 2-1 victory against Paris Saint-Germain, is expected to start down the middle in a striker capacity. The 24-year-old has turned his City career around and is in talks o a fresh contract. 

The Brazilian's impressive performance in his newly discovered right-wing role has helped City immensely so far this season, but the lack of personnel upfront means he is likely to return in the number nine role against West Ham.

Predicted XI: Ederson; Kyle Walker, Ruben Dias, John Stones, Joao Cancelo; Rodri, Bernardo Silva, Ilkay Gundogan; Raheem Sterling, Gabriel Jesus, Riyad Mahrez.

Substitutes: Zack Steffen, Scott Carson, Aymeric Laporte, Nathan Ake, Oleksandr Zinchenko, Fernandinho, Cole Palmer, James McAtee.