Dugout Discussion

Aguero, De Bruyne start for Man City as Sterling, Cancelo on bench for Double Gameweek 26 opener

Sergio Aguero (£10.3m) and Kevin De Bruyne (£11.8m) both start for Manchester City in their first Double Gameweek 26 fixture at home to West Ham.

Aguero makes his first appearance in a City starting XI since Gameweek 6 – in the reverse fixture against the Hammers – while De Bruyne made his full injury return by starting in the 1-0 win at Arsenal in Gameweek 25.

Ferran Torres (£6.9m) is another longer-term absentee making an injury comeback, which means a host of FPL assets find themselves on Pep Guardiola’s bench.

Raheem Sterling (£11.6m), Gabriel Jesus (£9.2m), Phil Foden (£6.1m) and Bernardo Silva (£7.4m) are all out of the XI, as is Joao Cancelo (£6.1m).

Rodri (£5.3m) is also on benchwarming duty as Fernandinho (£5.4m) earns a second consecutive league start, anchoring a midfield three also featuring De Bruyne and Ilkay Gundogan (£6.2m).

Aymeric Laporte (£6.0m) drops out of the starting line-up after beginning in the Champions League, as FPL managers’ favoured duo of Ruben Dias (£6.1m) and John Stones (£5.2m) are flanked in defence by Oleksandr Zinchenko (£5.5m) and Kyle Walker (£6.1m).

On his rotated side, Guardiola told BT Sport ahead of kick off:

Many games, we have two days recovery. We have a fantastic squad. Everyone deserves to play, all doing incredibly well, fresh legs and a very good mentality.

On West Ham, the Man City boss added:

Looks like they will play five at the back, previous seasons they did it as well, we knew it. They can do normal shape but they’ve done five at back at Old Trafford. The ideas are the same, good runners up front, two incredible holding midfielders. We try to impose our game.

Fabianski is absent for the Irons

Lukasz Fabianski (£5.0m) is the big name missing from West Ham’s starting line-up, with the Poland keeper ruled out due to a training-ground injury.

“Unfortunately one of the players just stood on Lukasz’s arm yesterday (in training). It’s swollen up, he’s just not been able to extend his arm. It’s a real blow, he’s been in really good form.” – David Moyes

Ireland international Darren Randolph (£4.3m) is between the sticks for the Hammers, behind a back five of Ben Johnson (£3.9m), Aaron Cresswell (£5.8m), Craig Dawson (£4.5m), Issa Diop (£4.3m) and Vladimir Coufal (£4.7m).

Declan Rice (£4.7m) and Tomas Soucek (£5.3m) will hope to add to the spoiling effect of Moyes’ five-man defence, behind a front three of Jesse Lingard (£5.9m), Pablo Fornals (£5.9m) and Michail Antonio (£6.5m).

Manchester City XI (4-3-3): Ederson; Zinchenko, Dias, Stones, Walker; Gundogan, Fernandinho, De Bruyne; Torres, Aguero, Mahrez.

West Ham United XI (5-2-2-1): Randolph; Johnson, Cresswell, Dawson, Diop, Coufal; Rice, Soucek; Fornals, Lingard; Antonio.

1,312 Comments Post a Comment
  1. Eh, just one more thing ...
    • 12 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    VAR checking for offside ... think it’s okay though

  2. 272MK
    • 10 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Hows Gundo my kapitan?

    1. Im New Here
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 3 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Quiet

  3. Big boy Bowen
    • 7 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Antonio G

  4. MagicMessi
    • 11 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Yaaaaaaas Clean sheet annihilated

  5. Sun Jihai
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 12 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Lingardinho looking a genuine option for BGW29!

    1. MoSalad
      • 10 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      100% he’s been great since joining West Ham

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

      Yes.

  6. Forza Papac
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 8 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    GET IN

  7. REDMOND IN SANDALS
    • 3 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    lets go stones ederson in mud

  8. Jafooli
    • 12 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Get Foden on ASAP....baldy fraud...

  9. Rash
    • 6 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    That makes the Dias goal all the sweeter!

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

      True that

    2. Predator
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 13 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      No bonus is not sweeter

      1. evilfish
        • 8 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        It is when you own Dias and Cancelo

      2. REDMOND IN SANDALS
        • 3 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        Dias is on 3 bonus

    3. Twisted Saltergater
      • 14 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Your logic is off

  10. Big boy Bowen
    • 7 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Lingard becoming increasingly essential (serious)

    1. Eh, just one more thing ...
      • 12 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      He’s been looking good in terms of FPL no doubt.

  11. Champions League Varane
    • 5 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Ffsss

  12. Holmes
    • 10 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    No CS points for Stones, nice...

    1. Jindaljain
      • 9 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      He will score from corners

  13. Goodfeathers
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 9 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Stones owners gutted.

  14. _Ninja_
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 13 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    So glad I kept Antonio, will destroy Leeds next week.

  15. Atimis
    • 7 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Antonio to Kane -4 went well already...

    1. Jindaljain
      • 9 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      Same here

  16. Debauchy
    • 11 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Antonio first sub get in

  17. Jindaljain
    • 9 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Lingard wasted at United

  18. MoSalad
    • 10 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Need Antonio back in next GW 100%

  19. Roy Hudd
    • 7 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    That's justice for Cancelo owners is that. Very sweet.

    1. Eh, just one more thing ...
      • 12 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      As a Dias and Cancelo owner it doesn’t hurt too much

      1. Roy Hudd
        • 7 Years
        3 years, 1 month ago

        Same here. Own Dias too.

  20. Hotdogs for Tea
    • 8 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Double City defence fail

  21. Big boy Bowen
    • 7 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Antonio trolling us all past couple of weeks and punishing the vast amount of sellers!

  22. Zilla
    • 6 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    No Cancelo, no CS.

    1. HonestBlatter
      • 13 Years
      3 years, 1 month ago

      THIS...Pep will you ever learn

  23. Botman and Robben
    • 7 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Antonio angry with his many sellers.

  24. Crouching Tiger
    • 11 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Lol. Transferred Antonio out for Diagne, but to be fair, I would have subbed him anyway.

  25. Hazz
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 6 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    West Ham are great. Fair play to 'em.

  26. Stupendous
    • 11 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    As a cancelo stones gundo vs rival Dias Ederson Gundo(c) owner that was magic.

    Awful as a City fan

  27. REDMOND IN SANDALS
    • 3 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Antonio Jlingz combo too good

  28. Big boy Bowen
    • 7 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Clean sheet Cancelo’d

  29. F_Ivanovic
    • 8 Years
    3 years, 1 month ago

    Antonio is coming in next week. Can't not have him against Leeds.

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

      This!

      For Bamford.

      More power to FHgw29.

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

    1000 minutes and 153 days since Ederson has conceded a home goal!!