Manchester United vs Manchester City preview: John Stones misses trip to Old Trafford with injury

By Ric Turner, Fri 13 January 2023 17:14


Manchester United vs Manchester City preview: John Stones misses trip to Old Trafford with injuryBlues looking to bounce back in league after disappointing Carabao Cup exit at St Mary's

Manchester United vs Manchester City

Competition: F.A. Premier League

Date: 12.30pm, Saturday 14th January 2023

Venue: Old Trafford, Trafford

Referee: Stuart Atwell Assistants: G Beswick, D Cann Fourth Official: R Jones VAR: M Oliver

Odds: Man United 3/1, Draw 11/4, City 5/6

Tickets: Sold out

TV: BT Sport

Manchester United

Manager: Erik ten Hag

Squad (from): De Gea, Heaton, Butland, Lindelof, Jones, Maguire, Martinez, Malacia, Varane, Shaw, Wan-Bissaka, Williams, Fernandes, Eriksen, Fred, Casemiro, Pellestri, McTominay, Martial, Rashford, Antony, Elanga, Garnacho

Injured: Dalot, van de Beek, Sancho, Tuanzebe

Doubtful: Martial

Suspended: None

Form guide: WWWWW

Manchester City

Manager: Pep Guardiola

Squad (from): Ederson, Ortega, Carson, Walker, Ake, Cancelo, Laporte, Akanji, Gomez, Lewis, Gundogan, Phillips, Grealish, Rodri, De Bruyne, Silva, Foden, Palmer, Haaland, Alvarez, Mahrez

Injured: Dias, Stones

Doubtful: None

Suspended: None

Form guide: WDWWL

John Stones is unavailable for the trip to Old Trafford, joining fellow defender Ruben Dias on the sidelines, but otherwise Pep Guardiola has a fully fit squad to select from.

The Blues crashed out of the Carabao Cup on Wednesday evening with a disappointing 2-0 defeat against Southampton, but the manager is hoping that it was a rare poor performance from his side.

“What happened didn't surprise me, we tried to avoid it,” Guardiola said at Friday's press conference.

“It happened because we have won four Premier League titles in five years.

“The Carabao Cup - they have to show me consistency and this was our strength in previous seasons - but after back-to-back games (against Chelsea), we were not able to go there and be ourselves.

“Not (necessarily) win games – just be ourselves.

“I was concerned (the Southampton performance) could happen, it has happened and hopefully it won't happen again.”

City won their last game against United at Old Trafford 2-0, with an own goal from Eric Bailly and a Bernardo Silva goal. Overall City have won 56 of the 177 games played against United, with 50 draws and 71 defeats.

Predicted line-up: Ederson, Walker, Akanji, Laporte, Ake, Rodri, Silva, De Bruyne, Grealish, Mahrez, Haaland

Score prediction: United 1 City 1