Manchester City aim for a place in the FA Cup quarter-finals tonight when they travel to Kenilworth Road to take on Luton Town
Manchester City face a difficult trip to Kenilworth Road in the FA Cup on Tuesday evening. Luton Town have made their home a difficult place to go for all of the Premier League\’s top teams so far this season, and are sure to do the same for the Blues tonight.
City are on a 17-match unbeaten run in all competitions and come into the fifth-round tie off the back of a hard-fought Premier League win at Bournemouth on Saturday, thanks to Phil Foden\’s first-half goal.Amidst a frantic fixture schedule, Pep Guardiola could have a fully-fit squad to choose from. Kevin De Bruyne and Jack Grealish were both on the substitutes bench at the Vitality Stadium as they return from absences. Josko Gvardiol appears to be the only doubt, with Guardiola saying in his press conference yesterday that while he is working his way back to fitness he hadn’t yet returned to training with the squad.Read how our writers think City should line up below and use the interactive team selector to pick your own starting XI to face Luton Town:
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Simon Bajkowski
Stefan Ortega obviously comes in as the cup keeper but after that it gets harder to think of changes. Rico Lewis could do with playing and Jack Grealish needs to build up his minutes after injury
Does Kevin De Bruyne start if you want him to start the derby? He probably needs to for rhythm, although you may need to take him off after an hour regardless. Julian Alvarez can come in for Phil Foden for anyone feeling brave enough to leave Foden out of the team given his importance lately.
It feels like the front three of Grealish, Bernardo Silva and Erling Haaland may be needed for the run-in so the more minutes they play together the better. Having Silva in also gives cover if you are going to have Alvarez in the midfield as he can then push forward alongside Haaland.
Joe Bray
Guardiola must find a balance between making changes to ease the load on his tired ‘Supermen’, while also fielding a starting XI strong enough to win at a stadium where City struggled in the league. Stefan Ortega will come in, and this is a chance to give minutes to players like Rico Lewis, Mateo Kovacic, Matheus Nunes and Oscar Bobb while still keeping expectations high.
I\’d be tempted to rest Erling Haaland after five goalless appearances in his last seven. Guardiola said he\’s still not at his best after his injury, and he was replaced on 75 minutes at Bournemouth with City still needing a goal to kill the game. A rest might benefit him, and allow Julian Alvarez a game in his preferred position. Bobb and Jeremy Doku can complete an attacking front line that can welcome back Jack Grealish off the bench as well as the in-form Phil Foden.
Resting Rodri is always a risk, but he will be needed a lot over the coming month. Mateo Kovacic and Rico Lewis can operate in midfield, with Kevin De Bruyne back from injury in front of them – with a view to managing his minutes later in the game. Matheus Nunes can replace him in the second half. Kyle Walker should return and John Stones can be rested as his own game-time is carefully monitored.