Dugout Discussion

City players missing with COVID-19 revealed as fit-again Ziyech returns

A Manchester City squad hit by injury and illness take on Chelsea in the second of today’s two Premier League fixtures.

Kick-off at Stamford Bridge is at 16:30 GMT.

The visitors are missing six of their squad because of COVID-19 positive tests.

The unavailability of Kyle Walker (£6.1m) and Gabriel Jesus (£9.1m) we were already aware of, while social media posts from Ederson (£6.0m) and Tommy Doyle (£4.4m) all but confirmed that they too were among those self-isolating.

Ferran Torres (£6.9m) and Eric Garcia (£4.7m) have reportedly been added to that list, with the latter still struggling with injury, too.

Despite the shortage of options, Sergio Aguero (£10.3m) is still only among the substitutes for this afternoon’s fixture.

Goalkeeper Zack Steffen (£4.4m) makes his Premier League debut as Pep Guardiola makes three changes to the City side that beat Newcastle 2-0 in Gameweek 15.

Oleksandr Zinchenko (£5.5m) and Phil Foden (£6.2m) are also recalled, with Ederson, Torres and Nathan Ake (£5.4m) dropping out.

Ake is absent because of “fitness issues”, while Aymeric Laporte (£6.0m) misses out because of a tight hamstring.

Benjamin Mendy (£5.9m) is on the bench, despite his off-field misdeeds.

Frank Lampard makes five changes to the Chelsea team that drew 1-1 at home to Aston Villa last Monday.

Timo Werner (£9.2m) is recalled, while Hakim Ziyech (£8.1m) makes his first appearance since suffering a hamstring injury in early December.

Thiago Silva (£5.6m), Kurt Zouma (£5.8m) and Mateo Kovacic (£5.3m) also return to the side.

Reece James (£5.2m) is again absent through injury, while Olivier Giroud (£6.7m), Andreas Christensen (£4.7m), Antonio Rudiger (£4.7m), Callum Hudson-Odoi (£5.7m) and Jorginho (£4.7m) drop out of the starting XI.


Chelsea XI: Mendy, Azpilicueta, Zouma, Thiago Silva, Chilwell, Kanté, Kovacic, Mount, Pulisic, Werner, Ziyech.

Manchester City XI: Steffen, Cancelo, Dias, Stones, Zinchenko, Rodrigo, Gundogan, De Bruyne, Foden, Bernardo, Sterling

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2,436 Comments Post a Comment
  1. ⭐ Bemba_Da ⭐
    • 13 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    That’s a pen

    1. Steve The Spud
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 4 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Yeah, that looked blatant to be honest

    2. Feed tha Sheep
      • 11 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      No he wins the ball

    3. AC/DC AFC
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 8 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Nah

  2. jason_ni
    • 8 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Zouma and cancelo.. nil nil please, or 1-1 with zouna header, and canclo goal involvement!

  3. Make United Great Again
    • 11 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    John Stones to follow in Holdings footsteps and get a double figure haul..

  4. Bourbon, Pot Still or Islay…
    • 9 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    How the hell is Carroll getting 3 BPS in that last game!?!!

    1. Hazz
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 6 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Read the rules for BPS.

    2. riot
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 13 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      world's best player

    3. Feed tha Sheep
      • 11 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Was thinking the same

    4. All Hail K
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 14 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Bonus system has been a joke since they switched to numbers. Transparent but dumb.

    5. TorresMagic™
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • Has Moderation Rights
      • 14 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Forward scoring a goal.

      1. Bourbon, Pot Still or Islay…
        • 9 Years
        3 years, 2 months ago

        He played 10 mins - what else did he do!?
        It is a joke

  5. Make United Great Again
    • 11 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Rodri didn’t get the ball?

    1. Feed tha Sheep
      • 11 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      I thought he did

  6. Top Lad Dakes.
    • 7 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    KDBloody awful yet again.

    How can I even keep for the DGW when he plays like this?

  7. Pedram
    • 10 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Who's hoping for 0-0? speaking as a Dias-Zouma owner.

    1. Champions League Varane
      • 5 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Perfect. Both teams drops points and I get the Stones clean sheet

      Here’s hoping

    2. CasaBanter
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 9 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Owner of neither. Nervously hoping for a 1-1. My cup opponent has defenders from both teams.

  8. ivantys
    • 3 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Clear pen wtf var

    1. AC/DC AFC
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 8 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      He tackled him

  9. CheesyZoot
    • 4 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    That's a pen if Spurs got theirs yesterday.

    No consistency, shambles

    1. Make United Great Again
      • 11 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Exactly

    2. All Hail K
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 14 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Rodri put out the fire he started with gasoline... and it worked !!??

  10. JONALDINHO
    • 6 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    I don’t understand how Spurs got a pen yesterday and that wasn’t.

  11. dark91
    • 8 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Kdb looks so lost

    1. Nimby
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 5 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      The game has been on less than 15 minutes.

      1. dark91
        • 8 Years
        3 years, 2 months ago

        That is enough to tell if a player is looking lively or not. Pulisic and Werner for example are looking lively unlike Kevin

        1. Nimby
          • Fantasy Football Scout Member
          • 5 Years
          3 years, 2 months ago

          He was looking fine and now he has an assist.

          1. dark91
            • 8 Years
            3 years, 2 months ago

            Ok let's ignore that 1 on 1 he missed and celebrate the assist 🙂

  12. Nimby
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 5 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Rodri is no good. Horrible footballer.

  13. HD7
    • 7 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Dont have anyone in this match. And as a neutral fan I would like to see goals galore 2-2. But 1-1 is also okay as long it wipes ous so many defenders in this fixture:)

  14. Bubz
    • 10 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    City are just an unrecognizable team these days

  15. Stranger Mings
    • 3 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Does this lineup help us at all deciding which city defender to get?!

    1. JONALDINHO
      • 6 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Stones looks good with both Laporte and Ake out of squad. Mendy seems to be out of faith so Cancelo looks good too

      1. Stranger Mings
        • 3 Years
        3 years, 2 months ago

        Be amazing if stones is nailed as has to be best one to get as such good value

    2. TorresMagic™
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • Has Moderation Rights
      • 14 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      City have more games before GW18.

      1. Stranger Mings
        • 3 Years
        3 years, 2 months ago

        True but if he rests Cancelo, stones or Dias in either both or one cup game that will help to know

  16. Kodap
    • 6 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Wouldn't say that was a pen at all.

  17. AC/DC AFC
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 8 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    So KDB is leading the line?

  18. Kane and Ablett
    • 3 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Anyone else hoping for hat tricks for Stones and Dias in this one in which they assist each other in all the goals, KDB assists the assister for every goal and is then sent off with Chilwell for a wee bit of argie bargie in the 55th minute in a 6-0?

    1. tinear
      • 4 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Why not

  19. rnrd
    • 9 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Who will be brave enough to go for aguero for the double Gw19?

    Pep said he will jump right into the starting XI as soon as fit.
    He could be the ultimate différential

    1. riot
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 13 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Maybe if he was 8.0

    2. CasaBanter
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 9 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Yup, I’m considering this. Will see how we go.

  20. Salan
    • 14 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Manchester City looks terrible

    1. Rolls-Royce
      • 10 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Nothing new then

  21. Flair
    • 3 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Is this the KDB I'm ripping up my team for? Why? Just why?

    1. It’s gonna Ben Mee
      • 10 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Nostalgia?

  22. Rolls-Royce
    • 10 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Chelsea midfield with Kovacic always goes one level up. Massively underrated player.

  23. Champions League Varane
    • 5 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Everyone saying how poor City are..

    They play Villa in the double. Is that really a good fixture?

    1. Nimby
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 5 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      The blank next week is a an opportunity to take a punt on two or three of them and see how it goes.

    2. TRIPOS TOPPER
      • 6 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      it's not a good fixture

      Villa will give them a tough game

    3. jason_ni
      • 8 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      More to do with palace being the other game as well..

  24. Captain Vantastic™
    • 12 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    City look shaky

  25. Ragabolly
    • 14 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    No chance City keeps a CS here

    1. TorresMagic™
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • Has Moderation Rights
      • 14 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      Too early Ragabolly, clean sheet guaranteed now.

    2. Thomas Shelby from Birmingh…
      • 4 Years
      3 years, 2 months ago

      You can't trust Chelsea

  26. Flair
    • 3 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    No Dias CS incoming for sure, but can't really fault him after his consistent returns

  27. _Ninja_
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 13 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    kdb big miss

  28. Make United Great Again
    • 11 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    KDB big miss

  29. THFC4LIFE
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 7 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    KDB should score

  30. ⭐ Bemba_Da ⭐
    • 13 Years
    3 years, 2 months ago

    Really poor shot from kdb