Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola will not have a full complement of players to choose from on Saturday against Manchester United
Manchester City could start the Community Shield with just four players from their lineup for the FA Cup Final against Manchester United.
United’s victory back in May has brought a rematch for the start of the 2024/25 campaign after another Premier League title for City,
but Pep Guardiola’s team at least could look very different.
Extended rests given to players following their involvement at the European Championship
mean that the Blues will be far from full strength for the fixture.
Phil Foden, Rodri, Kyle Walker, and John Stones – who all played in the Euros final –
have not yet returned to training and are almost certain to miss the game as they take their time to
build back up for the new season. Guardiola has told them it is more important to return when they feel hungry
again rather than come back specifically for the Community Shield.
Julian Alvarez will also be absent given his exploits with Argentina at the Copa America and Olympics,
although he may not be a City player by Saturday.
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Then eight first-team players only returned to training this week; Savinho, Kevin De Bruyne,
Nathan Ake, Manu Akanji, Ruben Dias, Bernardo Silva, Matheus Nunes, and Jeremy Doku have only just arrived back in Manchester.
All will have had just a few sessions with the rest of the squad before traveling down to
Wembley on Friday for the game, making it unlikely they are back to anywhere near full fitness.
That could leave Guardiola with just four players who started the FA Cup Final –
Stefan Ortega, Josko Gvardiol, Mateo Kovacic, and Erling Haaland.
In addition, he will look to call on Jack Grealish and Oscar Bobb after their involvement
on the summer tour while Rico Lewis and James McAtee could also be in line for starts.