Stoke vs. Manchester City: Team News, Predicted Lineups, Live Stream, TV Info
Manchester City visit Stoke City on Saturday looking to extend their winning run in all competitions to three matches.
The Blues lost to both Liverpool and Juventus recently, but momentum has been regained after comfortable victories over Southampton and Hull City.
The £265 million investment made by China Media Capital (CMC) into the City Football Group (CFG) has stolen many of the headlines this week, but Manuel Pellegrini knows with games coming quickly over the next few weeks, focusing on his team’s fortunes on the pitch is the most important thing.
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Stoke usually pose a significant test for City, particularly at the Britannia, where last season’s 4-1 win was the Blues’ first there in the Premier League era.
Potters manager Mark Hughes has set about altering his side’s style since he took over from Tony Pulis in 2013, making them less direct and physical, encouraging them to instead get the ball down and pass.
They still possess a level of physicality, but their more attractive approach suits City far better than the long-ball style that came to define the Pulis era.
Date: Saturday, December 5
Kick-off: 12:45 p.m. GMT/7:45 a.m. ET
TV Listings: BT Sport 1 (UK) & NBC Sports Live Extra
Live Stream: BT Sport Live Streaming (UK)
"Global City... 🌍📺 Find out how you can tune in to #stokevcity around the world: https://t.co/YrEtgkJWWM #mcfc pic.twitter.com/rfMy9EYuz7
— Manchester City FC (@MCFC) December 4, 2015"
Form Guide (Last five results)
Stoke City
Stoke City 2-0 Sheffield Wednesday (League Cup)
Sunderland 2-0 Stoke City
Southampton 0-1 Stoke City
Stoke City 1-0 Chelsea
Newcastle United 0-0 Stoke City
".@JackButland_One v Joe Hart. Stats focus on @england's top two 'keepers. Head to Head: https://t.co/6zhuabl83P pic.twitter.com/n6mxr4guvR
— Manchester City FC (@MCFC) December 4, 2015"
Manchester City
Manchester City 4-1 Hull City (League Cup)
Manchester City 3-1 Southampton
Juventus 1-0 Manchester City
Manchester City 1-4 Liverpool
Aston Villa 0-0 Manchester City
Predicted Formations
Stoke City
Stoke's Ryan Shawcross is back after serving a one-match suspension, but Peter Crouch is a doubt with a hamstring injury.
Stoke City (from): Butland, Haugaard, Bardsley, Cameron, Johnson, Muniesa, Pieters, Shawcross, Teixeira, Wilson, Wollscheid, Adam, Afellay, Ireland, Moha, Shaqiri, Shenton, Sidwell, Van Ginkel, Whelan, Arnautovic, Bojan, Crouch, Diouf, Joselu, Odemwingie, Walters.
Predicted XI (4-2-3-1): Butland; Johnson, Shawcross, Wollscheid, Pieters; Whelan, Adam; Shaqiri, Krkic, Arnautovic; Walters
"PLAYER | Mark Hughes previews tomorrow's game with @MCFC https://t.co/2NDefvmCHU #SCFC pic.twitter.com/EpDBIGGFYa
— Stoke City FC (@stokecity) December 4, 2015"
Manchester City
Pellegrini is without seven players for the trip to Stoke. Vincent Kompany, Pablo Zabaleta, Sergio Aguero, Yaya Toure, Patrick Roberts and Samir Nasri are all injured, and Eliaquim Mangala is suspended.
Manchester City (from): Caballero, Hart, Wright, Clichy, Demichelis, Kolarov, Otamendi, Sagna, De Bruyne, Delph, Fernandinho, Fernando, Nasri, Navas, Roberts, Silva, Toure, Zuculini, Aguero, Bony, Iheanacho, Sterling.
Predicted XI (4-2-3-1): Hart; Sagna, Otamendi, Demichelis, Kolarov; Fernandinho, Delph; De Bruyne, Silva, Sterling; Bony.
"MH on @mcfc: They'll replace injured players with £25m players. They can replace outstanding players with other outstanding players. #mcfc
— Stoke City FC (@stokecity) December 4, 2015"
Players To Watch
Stoke City: Jonathan Walters
Stoke striker Jonathan Walters has an unfair reputation as being nothing more than a battering-ram-type striker, but his value to the side should not be underestimated.
Walters has great strength and allows Stoke to play direct when needed, but he also has a decent touch and excellent vision.
Keeping him quiet is often key to restricting Stoke's chances of goals.
Manchester City: Kevin De Bruyne
Since his summer arrival, Kevin De Bruyne has been directly involved in 10 Premier League goals (four goals, six assists) in 10 games.
It's been an exceptional start to life at the Etihad for the 24-year-old Belgian. He's adapted with ease and is already a vital member of City's best XI.
Very few players possess the ability to provide key moments with quite the regularity he does, and with David Silva now back in action, it will be interesting to see what kind of partnership they can strike up.
Key Battle
Glenn Whelan vs. David Silva
City's most creative player returned to the starting lineup against Hull on Tuesday and was the man of the match.
David Silva spent nine games on the sidelines nursing an ankle injury, but he made a substitute appearance against Southampton before completely dictating play against Hull in midweek. City will be glad to have him back.
"Everyone tries to link with him [Silva]," Pellegrini said on Friday. "He makes all the tempo of the game, and he has the most accurate pass in his last third."
Glenn Whelan tends to be the man outlined to stifle opponents' more creative players. The former City man is a hard-working player, one who specialises in frustrating technically gifted stars.
This will certainly be a duel to keep a close eye on.
Odds (via Odds Shark)
Stoke: +457
City: -161
Draw: +268
Rob Pollard is Bleacher Report's lead Manchester City correspondent and will be following the club from a Manchester base throughout the 2015/16 season. All quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. Follow him on Twitter @RobPollard_.
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