Manchester City is set to take on AC Milan this Saturday at Yankee Stadium in New York. The match is going to be an exciting watch as the defending champions of the Premier League will go head-to-head with the Italian giants and Serie-A runners-up. This season’s past winners have clinched six titles in the last seven Premier League seasons. They have been the English champions for the last four seasons consecutively. Having said that this might be the last season of the Blues under Pep Guardiola, they’ll be hoping for a fifth title to come their way too, and bid a proper farewell to their manager.
On the other hand, their opponent last won the domestic league title in the Serie A season 2021-2022. After finishing second in the last season with 19 points behind the champions Inter Milan, they will be keen to lift the trophy this season under their new boss Paulo Fonseca, who has joined the club lately on a three-year contract.
Head-to-Head Stats and Insights
It has been a significantly long time since both these sides met back in 2014 in Champions Cup Group B, where the match ended 1-5, Manchester City thrashing their opposition during that time. Another match took place in July 2013 in the Audi Cup, where again the same side suffered defeat with a huge 5-3 scoreline. Although the teams were completely different then (a decade ago), City clearly has an upper hand in this tie.
Evident from the stats, the reigning champions have been proven victorious both times these teams met. A current statistic also turns out to be that AC Milan has not won any of their last six away games; there has been a significant away win drought for the Italian side. Both of the teams facing each other today lost their last pre-season matches in the Club Friendlies 2024 against Rapid Wein and Celtic, respectively.
Each side is struggling to find their potential form. They will have to work hard to attain their standards and bounce back as soon as possible. A win at this stage will certainly help them do so; it will also boost their confidence ahead of their respective domestic league campaigns for the upcoming season.
Manchester City vs. AC Milan: Team News
Several stars, including Rodri, Phil Foden, Kyle Walker, and John Stones, are to miss out on this pre-season clash. Currently enjoying their well-deserved vacations after a busy season and tiring international duties, there are going to be major absentees in the game. A Saudi side has offered Ederson a huge amount of money; considering his move, he is likely to miss the match as well.
The Euro 2024 winner, Alvaro Morata, who has just signed for the club, will not be able to feature against the English champions. However, they already gave chances to their young talents in their first two pre-season games, but the results have not gone their way. So, now they will be looking to strengthen their squad by including a few experienced players against the Manchester City Blues.
Probable Starting-XI
Unfortunately for the Italians, Rafael Leao, Maignan, and Theo Hernandez are set to miss this Saturday’s game against City. Regulars for the club Tomori, Florenzi, and Bennacer will play a vital role in today’s starting XI. The possible starting line-up for both teams could be:
Manchester City Starting XI: Ortega, Simpson-Pusey, Mbete, Lewis, McAtee, Bobb, Phillips, Perrone, Grealish, and Haaland.
AC Milan Starting XI: Sportiello, Tomori, Jimenez, Calabria, Bennacer, Florenzi, Pobega, Chukwueze, Traore, Colombo, and Liberali.
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