Both sides will want to bounce back from disappointing results last time out when they kick-off another busy weekend of Premier League football
Manchester City will look to return to the top of the Premier League when they welcome Everton to the Etihad Stadium on Saturday.
Pep Guardiola’s side dropped to second in the table after a disappointing 2-0 defeat to Chelsea last time out, and with Liverpool not playing until Sunday a win would see them usurp their rivals, even if only temporarily.
As for Everton, they also dropped points last time out. The Toffees drew 2-2 with Watford on Monday night, but were saved at the death by an injury-time free-kick from Lucas Digne.
Like City, Everton would move up one place in the table should they emerge victorious on Saturday. They trail Manchester United by two points and could finish the weekend as high as sixth in the league.
TV Channel, Live Stream & How To Watch
In the United States (US), the game can be watched live and on-demand with fuboTV (7-day free trial) .
New users can sign up for a free seven-day trial of the live sports streaming service, which can be accessed via iOS, Android, Chromecast, Amazon Fire TV, Roku and Apple TV as well as on a web browser.
In the United Kingdom (UK), the game can be watched on Sky Sports Main Event and Premier League, and can be streamed via Sky Go.
Squads & Team News
It’s mixed news for Guardiola ahead of this one. The former Barcelona and Bayern Munich coach could welcome back Sergio Aguero and Kevin De Bruyne, but he is also missing several key players.
Guardiola confirmed in Friday’s press conference that the pair trained with "no pain" ahead of the match and they both could feature against Everton.
Aguero has missed the last four games with a groin issue and will face a late fitness test on Saturday. As for De Bruyne, he has been limited to just five appearances in all competitions for City this season, due to separate knee ligament injuries.
The downside, however, is that David Silva has been ruled out for the next three weeks with a hamstring problem, while there are issues surrounding the fitness of Danilo and John Stones.
The latter was replaced at half-time during City’s midweek Champions League game against Hoffenheim.
Long-term absentees Claudio Bravo and Benjamin Mendy are still unavailable.
Possible Manchester City starting XI: Ederson; Walker, Otamendi, Laporte, Delph; Gundogan, Fernandinho, B.Silva; Mahrez, Aguero, Sterling.
Marco Silva’s only real concern ahead of Saturday's game is the fitness of Idrissa Gueye. The midfielder was replaced against Watford on Monday with a knock.
If available, the Senegal international is expected to start alongside Andre Gomes in the centre of the park.
Possible Everton starting XI: Pickford; Coleman, Keane, Mina, Digne; Gueye, Gomes, Walcott, Sigurdsson, Bernard; Richarlison
Betting & Match Odds
Unsurprisingly, City are favourites heading into the game and can be backed at 2/9 with bet365. The bookmakers are offering a price of 12/1 for a shock away win, while a draw is 13/2.
Match Preview
It’s an unusual feeling for Guardiola and co. to head into a Premier League game not on top of the table. Yet, ironically for a team who have been relentless in recent seasons, City must now try and keep pace with Liverpool.
Playing the day before Jurgen Klopp’s Reds gives City the opportunity to put pressure on Liverpool ahead of their mammoth game against Manchester United on Sunday, when the blue half of Manchester will be hoping their neighbours can do them a favour.
Everton, meanwhile, are just two points off breaking into the top six and could overtake United this weekend.
City have won all eight home games in the Premier League this season, so Everton know it will be an extremely tough task to emerge from the Etihad Stadium with anything. However, Marco Silva’s men will be buoyed by the knowledge they were one of only three sides to take points off City at home in the league last year.
Last weekend’s defeat to Chelsea was City’s first in 22 league games and they haven’t been beaten in back-to-back Premier League matches for two years.
If the Toffees are to get anything from the game, they will likely need Richarlison to once again be firing on all cylinders. The Brazilian has been superb for Everton this season and only three players have netted more times in the Premier League this campaign than the former Watford man (Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Mohamed Salah and Harry Kane).
For City, meanwhile, Aguero’s likely return is a timely boost for Guardiola ahead of the hectic Christmas period, with the champions having struggled in attack in recent weeks without the Argentine.