Mukasa set for debut as six Academy players start Carabao Cup clash | OneFootball

Academy youngster Divine Mukasa will make his City debut in tonight’s Carabao Cup third round tie at Huddersfield Town.

The 18-year-old midfielder is one of six homegrown players to start tonight’s clash in West Yorkshire, which kicks off at 19:45 (UK).

Pep Guardiola has made nine changes from the team that started our last three matches with Nico O’Reilly and Phil Foden remaining in the XI.

The boss has also named four more former Academy players on the bench, including brothers Reigan and Jaden Heskey and Stephen Mfuni who have yet to make their first team bows.

Teams

HUDDERSFIELD XI: Nicholls, Sorensen, Wallace, Wiles (c), Harness, Chiles, Kasumu, Feeney, Roughan, Redmond, Vost

Substitutes: Goodman, Ledson, Low, Taylor, Castledine, Radulovic, May, Ashia, Sway

CITY XI: Trafford, Nunes, Stones (c), Ake, O’Reilly, Lewis, Nico, Bobb, Mukasa, Foden, Savinho

Substitutes: Donnarumma, Dias, Reijnders, Bernardo, Phillips, Braithwaite, J Heskey, Mfuni, R Heskey

TEAM TACTICS

Injuries and the calendar have forced Guardiola to make nine changes.

It could be a 4-2-3-1 formation with Nico O'Reilly set to continue at left-back alongside Nathan Ake and John Stones in the centre.

Rico Lewis likely to go into midfield on his 99th appearance for the Blues, alongside Nico.

That leaves Foden, Oscar Bobb and Mukasa further forward with Savinho likely to lead the line.

TAKE A BOW

Mukasa featured in our preseason friendly against Palermo and is now set for his senior bow.

He turned 18 shortly after that appearance in Italy and becomes the sixth Academy player to feature this season.

The midfielder helped the young Blues to FA Youth Cup success at the end of the 2023/24 campaign.

And last season, he played 41 games across all competitions, with 16 goals and 15 assists in just 20 games in the U18 Premier League.

Mfuni and the Heskey brothers could also feature for the first time while Kaden Braithwaite made his debut exactly a year ago at the same stage of the competition.

Take a break

The City boss confirmed he will make changes after naming the same line-ups in three successive games.

Guardiola confirmed that Abdukodir Khusanov will miss at least three games after being forced off in our 1-1 draw with Arsenal on Sunday.

Striker Erling Haaland has also been left behind with a slight back issue while Rodri has been given a rest as he continues his return from a lengthy lay-off.

But injuries have hit hard in the early weeks of the season with injuries to Rayan Cherki, Rayan Ait-Nouri, Omar Marmoush and Mateo Kovacic restricting Pep’s options.

Stats, facts and milestones

Huddersfield Town have been eliminated from each of their five domestic cup ties against City, most recently losing 5-0 in the 20232/4 FA Cup third round.

City are unbeaten in each of their last eight meetings with Huddersfield Town in all competitions (W5 D3), winning each of the last three by an aggregate score of 14-1.

Huddersfield Town could reach the fourth round of the League Cup for the first time since the 1999/00 season under Steve Bruce, though have been eliminated from six of their last seven third round ties, the exception coming when beating Chelsea 1-0 at Stamford Bridge in October 1999.

City have lost three of their last four League Cup matches (W1), more defeats and eliminations than across their first 29 games in the competition under Pep Guardiola (W22 D5 L2).