Manchester City vs Leicester City Preview, prediction, team news, and more | Premier League 2020/21

Brendan Rodgers' high-flying Leicester City are set to travel to the home of the former champions, Manchester City, on Sunday, 27th September, as Premier League action kicks off at the Etihad Stadium for the first time this season.

The Foxes have had an impressive start to the 2020/21 campaign with two wins in two so far, after a 3-0 win over West Brom in their opener and a 4-2 win against Burnley. Leicester currently sit on top of the Premier League table due to their goal difference of +5.

Although Pep Guardiola's City began their campaign with a superb 3-1 win over Wolves, they currently face a crisis due to a string of high-profile players being unavailable. However, with the likes of Kevin De Bruyne, Raheem Sterling, and a host of other players still ready to start, it would undoubtedly be a terrific contest at the Etihad Stadium.

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Manchester City vs Leicester City Head to Head

Leicester City and Manchester City in an encounter during the 2019/20 campaign

Historically speaking, the Cityzens and the Foxes have faced each other on over a 100 occasions in various competitions, but City hold a significant advantage as they've registered a whopping 61 wins. Leicester have 30 wins over their upcoming opponents, while 29 games have ended in a draw.

Since Leicester City's promotion to the Premier League in 2014, they have come up against Guardiola's side 12 times — winning just thrice, and losing eight games. Only one draw was played between the two sides.

17-year-old Liam Delap is the first player born in 2003 to play a competitive game for Manchester City.And, yes, he's the son of Rory. pic.twitter.com/1TFM6A8yCQ

— Squawka Football (@Squawka) September 24, 2020

Most recently, the Cityzens are fresh off a 2-1 win in the Carabao Cup against Bournemouth to seal their spot in the next round, while Leicester succumbed to a 2-0 loss to Mikel Arteta's Arsenal.

Manchester City Form Guide (all competitions): W-W

Leicester City Form Guide (all competitions): W-W-L

Also check out: Updated EPL Table 2020/21

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Manchester City vs Leicester City Team News

Strikers Jesus and Aguero are both ruled out for the game against Leicester

Manchester City

Pep Guardiola has a selection headache ahead of this game as he is set to be without a host of first-team players for the Foxes' visit. Due to injuries and a few players testing positive for COVID-19, he will have a limited pool of players to choose from.

Injured/Unavailable: Bernardo Silva, Sergio Aguero, Ilkay Gundogan, Oleksandr Zinchenko, Joao Cancelo, Gabriel Jesus

Suspended: None

Doubtful: Aymeric Laporte, Eric Garcia

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Leicester City

Star defender Ricardo Pereira is still unavailable

While Rodgers doesn't have as many absentees as his Catalan counterpart, Leicester also have a list of crucial names set to miss the clash. Star defender Ricardo Pereira is a notable name on the treatment table and is set to be deputised for by Justin James.

Injured/Unavailable: Ricardo Pereira, Wilfred Ndidi, Demarai Gray, Cengiz Under

Suspended: None

Doubtful: Filip Benkovic

Also check out: Complete EPL Fixtures 2020/21

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Manchester City vs Leicester City Predicted XIs

Sterling could play a central role for City

Manchester City Predicted XI: Ederson Moraes; Kyle Walker, John Stones, Nathan Ake, Benjamin Mendy; Fernandinho, Rodri, Kevin De Bruyne; Phil Foden, Raheem Sterling, Riyad Mahrez

Leicester City Predicted XI: Kasper Schmeichel; James Justin, Jonny Evans, Caglar Soyuncu, Timothy Castagne; Nampalys Mendy; Ayoze Perez, Youri Tielemans, Dennis Praet, Harvey Barnes; Jamie Vardy

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Manchester City vs Leicester City Prediction

4 - Amongst all Premier League players since the start of last season, only Kevin De Bruyne (8 matches) and Mohamed Salah (6) have both scored and assisted in the same game on more occasions than Manchester City star Phil Foden has across all competitions (4). Future. #CarabaoCup pic.twitter.com/z6iD6CtHwS

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) September 24, 2020

While both teams set to contest in this thrilling encounter are in superb form, this game will be a test of both their bench strength with a host of high-profile names absent from their sides. However, with the likes of Pereira, Ndidi, and others being absent for the visitors, City are certain to be in a position to capitalise. With De Bruyne in unstoppable form and the likes of Sterling and Foden among their ranks, the former champions could be expected to continue their winning run.

Scoreline prediction: Manchester City 3-1 Leicester City

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