Gundogan and Zinchenko return to squad as City host Barnsley | OneFootball

Ilkay Gundogan and Oleksandr Zinchenko are back in the matchday squad as we host Barnsley in our second pre-season friendly of the summer this evening.

The pair returned to the CFA this week after their exertions at this summer’s European Championships and they start on the bench against the Championships outfit.

Pep Guardiola has made two changes to his starting lineup from Tuesday’s win over Preston.

Sam Edozie and James MacAtee start, with Iker Pozo and Morgan Rogers moving to the bench.

Teams

City XI: Steffen, Cancelo, Dias, Ake, Mendy, Fernandinho, McAtee, Palmer, Knight, Edozie, Mahrez

Subs: Van Sas, Gundogan, Zinchenko, Sandler, Roberts, Couto, Moreno, Pozo, Rogers, Bolton, Gomes, Diounkou, Burns

Barnsley XI: Collins, Styles, Kitching, Brittain, Woodrow, Morris, Moon, Palmer, Oduor, Frieser, Helik

Subs: Walton, Williams, Benson, Halme, Sibbick, Ritzmaier, Miller, Thompson

Tactics

Pre-season is a time for experimentation – both in terms of team selection and formations – but it looks likely City will utilise a 4-3-3 formation at the Academy Stadium this evening.

Our backline is completely unchanged from Tuesday’s game, with Zack Steffen starting in goal, protected by a back four of Joao Cancelo, Ruben Dias, Nathan Ake and Benjamin Mendy.

Fernandinho will once again screen the back four, with James MacAtee and Cole Palmer playing just ahead of him.

And in our front three of Ben Knight, Sam Edozie and Riyad Mahrez, there’s plenty of pace and movement.

Ilkay Gundogan and Oleksandr Zinchenko are back to bolster our options and start on the bench, alongside Mikki Van Sas, Philippe Sandler, Patrick Roberts, Yan Couto, Pablo Moreno, Iker Pozo, Morgan Rogers, Luke Bolton, Claudio Gomes, Alpha Diounkou and Finley Burns.

Expect plenty of changes, just like there were on Tuesday, as Pep Guardiola gets a good look at his squad ahead of next weekend’s Community Shield game against Leicester at Wembley.

And with so many youngsters available who will be desperate to get a chance to impress, Guardiola will want to assess their credentials going into the new campaign.

Watch the game live on CITY+

CITY+ subscribers can follow every kick of our pre-season clash with Barnsley.

CITY+ is the only place where you can be across every twist and turn, as we lock horns with a side who reached the 2020-21 Championship play-offs.

Signing up costs just £1.99 per month, and provides full-match replays of all Men’s and Women’s clashes, as well as selected live broadcasts of Women’s, Elite Development Squad and Under-18s matches.

CITY+ | SUBSCRIBE TO ACCESS EXCLUSIVE CONTENT

However, CITY+ isn’t just restricted to providing a matchday experience, with a subscription also granting access to exclusive, original documentaries.

Indeed, Kevin De Bruyne: Made in Belgium and Shaun Wright-Phillips: City’s Homegrown Hero are just two examples of the hight quality, insightful content available with a subscription.

For further details about how to subscribe visit HERE.

WATCH: Watch City v Barnsley live on CITY+

Stats

City have faced Barnsley on 33 occasions, winning 17, drawing ten and losing six

City have scored 17 goals in our last three home games against Barnsley in all competitions: a 5-0 win in the FA Cup quarter-finals in March 2013, a 7-1 win in the League Cup second round in September 2004, and a 5-1 win in our Division One promotion-winning season of 2001-02.

Legendary City forward Eric Brook, who held our scoring record from September 1938 - November 2017, began his career at Barnsley, before switching to Maine Road in March 1928.

Barnsley reached the Championship play-off places last season, their first appearance since 1999-2000.

New head coach Markus Schopp briefly played alongside Pep Guardiola at Brescia.

There are two former Manchester City youth players in the Barnsley squad: Devante Cole (son of former City striker Andrew) and Romal Palmer.