Manchester City vs West Ham match preview: Bravo debut put on hold

By Ric Turner, Fri 26 August 2016 14:10


Manchester City vs West Ham match preview: Bravo debut put on holdGuardiola has no new injuries and confirms that "30 players" trained today

Manchester City vs West Ham United

Competition: F.A. Premier League

Date: 4.00pm, Sunday 28th August 2016

Venue: Etihad Stadium, Manchester

Referee: Andre Marriner Assistants: S Beck, S Ledger Fourth Official: M Jones

Odds: City 2/7, Draw 5/1, West Ham 11/1

Tickets: Available via mcfc.co.uk

TV: Sky Sports

Manchester City

Manager: Pep Guardiola

Squad (from): Caballero, Hart, Zabaleta, Maffeo, Kolarov, Mangala, Stones, Denayer, Clichy, Otamendi, Fernando, Nasri, Navas, De Bruyne, Delph, Silva, Fernandinho, Toure, Zinchenko, Sterling, Sane, Aguero, Iheanacho, Nolito, Bony

Injured: Gundogan, Sagna, Kompany

Doubtful: Sane

Suspended: None

Form guide: WWDDL

West Ham

Manager: Slaven Bilic

Squad (from): Randolph, Adrian, Spiegel, Reid, Collins, Ogbonna, Byram, Oxford, Kouyate, Obiang, Noble, Payet, Antonio, Valencia, Tore, Masuaku, Fletcher, Burke, Brown, Diangana

Injured: Carroll, Ayew, Feghouli, Cresswell, Henry, Sakho

Doubtful: Payet, Lanzini, Nordveldt

Suspended: None

Form guide: WLLWL

Claudio Bravo won't make his City debut against West Ham this weekend, despite having signed from Barcelona in time to play; Willy Caballero is expected to replace Joe Hart in goal. Kelechi Iheanacho is available again after suffering an injury scare during the 1-0 victory against Steaua Bucharest, and manager Pep Guardiola has no new injuries to contend with.

Regarding Bravo, Guardiola said: “He’s fit but he’s not going to play this weekend. He’s a goalkeeper with a lot of experience in Spain and in the national team.

“He played in important games to create something special for Chile. He’s good in the build-up plays and quick off his line. He’s a good player for us.”

“[We have] no injuries from midweek. Kelechi was almost nothing so it was a scare but he’s fine. Everybody’s fit and ready - we trained with 30 players today.”

City's last home game against West Ham ended in a 2-1 defeat with Kevin De Bruyne netting his first goal for the club in a surprise defeat. Overall City have won 48 of the 102 games played against West Ham, with 17 draws and 37 defeats.

Prediction: City 2 West Ham 1