City make three changes for trip to Wolves

Men's Team

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From the side that began our 3-2 win over Fulham 15 days ago, John Stones, Jeremy Doku and Savinho all come into the starting line-up.

Manuel Akanji, Phil Foden and Jack Grealish all revert to the bench.

Nathan Ake, out since September with a hamstring injury, makes a welcome return to the matchday squad and is also named amongst the substitutes

However, Kevin De Bruyne, who has been sidelined for the past month with a groin issue, remains unavailable for selection this afternoon.

Kyle Walker also misses out on the trip to the Midlands as the City skipper is not fully fit.

Teams

WOLVES: Sa, Semedo, Dawson, Bueno, Toti, Ait-Nouri, J. Gomes, Andre, Lemina, Cunha, Strand Larsen

Subs: Bentley, Doherty, R. Gomes, Doyle, Sarabia, Forbs, Bellegarde, Guedes, Lima

CITY XI: Ederson, Lewis, Stones, Dias (c), Gvardiol, Kovacic, Gundogan, Bernardo, Savinho, Doku, Haaland

Subs: Ortega Moreno, Carson, Ake, Grealish, Akanji, Nunes, Foden, O’Reilly, McAtee

Men's Team

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Tactics

Ederson will be the familiar figure in goal and protected by a back four of Rico Lewis, John Stones, captain Ruben Dias and Josko Gvardiol.

Mateo Kovacic is expected to provide the midfield defensive shield with Ilkay Gundogan and Bernardo Silva set to be alongside the Croatian in the engine room.

Erling Haaland will spearhead City’s attacking fulcrum with Savinho and Doku providing the width up-front.

However, such is the tactical and technical fluidity throughout Pep’s squad those positions could change throughout the afternoon!

The lure of history

Under the leadership of Pep Guardiola, City have become accustomed to rewriting the English record books – and history beckons once again at Molineux this afternoon.

Going into the game City are unbeaten in 30 Premier League games (W24 D6), the joint-longest run in our league history (one that we also achieved from April 2017 to January 2018).

Men's Team

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So, a victory or draw at Molineux this afternoon would see Guardiola‘s men create another notable club record.

In English top-flight history, on only six occasions has a side gone more than 30 matches without losing, most recently Liverpool’s run of 44 games from January 2019 to February 2020.

No extra lack of incentive for City then!

Note of caution

Wolves and City will step out for action at the opposite end of the Premier League table with City lying second and the Molineux side second from bottom.

However, as Pep pointed out in his pre-match press conference on Friday, past evidence illustrates this is set to be the toughest of examinations.

Gary O’Neil’s side recorded a 2-1 win over City at Molineux 12 months ago.

And traditionally over the course of Pep’s Etihad reign,  the men in Gold and Black have proved the most obdurate and dangerous of opponents.

Not that there ever is with City, but you can be even more sure that there will be no danger of any hint of complacency this afternoon.

Men's Team

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Stats and facts

●   Wolves won this fixture 2-1 last season but haven’t won consecutive home league meetings with Manchester City since a run of three between 1982 and 1996.

●  City have won seven of their last eight Premier League meetings with Wolves, scoring 25 goals across these games. The only exception was a 2-1 loss at Molineux in September last season.

●  Wolves have failed to win each of their opening seven games of a league season for the first time since 2004-05 in the Championship. Only in three previous campaigns have they had a longer winless run from the start of a league season: 1922-23 (8), 1926-27 (10), and 1983-84 (14).

●  Wolves are the only side to lose all of their home games in the Premier League this season (3/3). Never before in their league history have they lost their opening four home games of a campaign.

● City have fallen behind in four of their last six Premier League games, as many as their previous 19 beforehand, although the Citizens have recovered 10 points from losing positions in the competition this term, the most of any club. Indeed, Pep Guardiola’s side have won nine of the last 11 league games in which they have trailed (D2).

● Only Bournemouth (18) have recorded more shot-ending high turnovers in the Premier League this season than Wolves (16), with four of Wolves’ nine goals in the competition this term coming after a high turnover – a league-high figure.

●  City’s Kevin De Bruyne has been involved in nine Premier League goals in just four appearances against Wolves at Molineux (5 goals, 4 assists). There are just nine instances (from seven different players) of a player registering 10+ goal involvements away against an opponent in the competition.

●  City striker Erling Haaland has scored eight goals in just four Premier League appearances against Wolves, averaging a goal once every 40 minutes against them. However, just one of these eight strikes has come at Molineux.

●  Wolves’ Matheus Cunha has lost each of the last four Premier League games in which he has scored, including all three this season. Only two players in the competition’s history have lost five successive games when scoring: Heidar Helguson from January to April 2000 and Mohamed Diamé from April 2011 to October 2012.