Predicted Starting Line-Up: Manchester City vs Ipswich Town (Premier League) | OneFootball

Manchester City make their return to the Etihad Stadium on Saturday afternoon, as the Premier League champions welcome newly-promoted Ipswich Town.

A return to their home stadium this weekend for the champions, in a game which is a feature of the week gone past as the blues welcomed back former club captain Ilkay Gundogan with open arms on Friday morning.

After rumours first spiked across Monday regarding uncertainty over the future of the German midfielder, Manchester City were on the case like a flash, and wrapped up a deal for the 33-year-old on a free transfer from FC Barcelona.

Ilkay Gundogan himself labelled the return to the north-west of England as a “no-brainer”, as he felt as though he missed the feeling of winning trophies – something he did in abundance during a seven-year tenure at the club.

Despite the hype of the transfer, Pep Guardiola and the player have been very firm in stating that the focus is 100 per cent on this weekend’s fixture, with Manchester City facing Ipswich Town for the first time in over 20 years.

Kieran Mckenna’s side were unsuccessful in their Premier League opener last weekend, with Liverpool defeating the Tractor Boys 0-2 at Portman Road. Meanwhile, the Blues got up and running by the same scoreline away at Stamford Bridge, beating Enzo Maresca’s Chelsea.

Ipswich pose a different threat to the West London club, with the away side this weekend likely to hold their shape and try and hurt Manchester City in moments on the counter-attack, with the bulk of threat likely to come from the hosts.

Former Manchester City striker Liam Delap will be returning to a place he once called home, and the Ipswich boss may rely on the striker to provide a deadly blow upon his first return to the club since leaving on a £20 million exit.

The hosts will once again be without defensive midfield mainstay Rodrigo, who remains unfit following his injury in the European Championship final earlier this summer, although it could be the perfect excuse to slot in ‘new’ signing, Ilkay Gundogan.

With that being said, here is the Manchester City side we predict will take on Kieran McKenna’s Ipswich Town on Saturday afternoon, in an attempt to make it two out of two in the Premier League champions’ fifth consecutive title hopes.

Predicted XI

No changes will be made between the sticks this weekend, with mainstay number one Ederson keeping his place in the side following a clean sheet and a number of crucial stops registered away to Chelsea last time out.

Rico Lewis was magnificent at Stamford Bridge last Sunday and his manager made sure to praise him following the game. We think the 19-year-old will keep his place at the Etihad Stadium, leaving club captain Kyle Walker benched.

Ruben Dias helped ensure the clean sheet was intact on matchday one of Premier League action, forming a formidable partnership with Manuel Akanji which we expect to see again this time around.

Josko Gvardiol has largely made the left side of defence his own since joining from RB Leipzig last summer, and the Croatian international should remain a feature in Saturday’s team, completing the defensive unit.

Despite the signing of Ilkay Gundogan, we think Mateo Kovacic will be the cover for Rodrigo, following a Player of the Match showing against his former club last Sunday, which included a thunderous strike outside of the area to seal all three points.

Ahead of the 30-year-old, we’re anticipating that Kevin De Bruyne – despite playing the full 90 minutes against Chelsea – to start this one in midfield, alongside newly-crowned PFA Players’ Player of the Year, Phil Foden.

Pep Guardiola confirmed Savinho’s injury isn’t serious, but we expect no risks to be taken given the lack of depth in attack in light of Oscar Bobb’s leg bone fracture. As such, we think Bernardo Silva will start there, interchanging with Foden.

It was Erling Haaland who grabbed the headlines last weekend after making a mockery of Marc Cucurella for the first goal. The Norwegian will undoubtedly keep his place, looking to further expand his tally so far for the season.

Jeremy Doku occupied the left-wing role in West London last time out, but we expect a return to action for Jack Grealish, who is fit again after a small injury in pre-season, completing the line-up for Saturday’s fixture.

Predicted XI: Ederson; Lewis, Dias, Akanji, Gvardiol; Kovacic, De Bruyne, Foden; Bernardo, Haaland, Grealish.

Substitutes: Ortega Moreno, Walker, Stones, Ake, Gundogan, Nunes, Mcatee, Doku, Savinho.