Manchester City Predicted XI vs Bayer Leverkusen: Guardiola to Shake-Up the Team
- Lewis Walkden
- Nov 25
- 1 min read
Manchester City and Bayer Leverkusen meet for the first time in their history, setting up a Champions League clash between two sides arriving with very different momentum. City’s last outing in the competition was a dominant 4-1 win over Borussia Dortmund, but their confidence took a hit just two days ago with a disappointing 2-1 Premier League defeat to Newcastle, a flat performance that Pep's side will be desperate to bounce back from.
Leverkusen come into the fixture in excellent form. Their last Champions League match saw them edge Benfica 1-0, and they followed that with a strong 3-1 victory over Wolfsburg at the weekend. All signs point toward a challenging night for Manchester City.
In terms of the predicted XI, we expect Pep Guardiola to take a different approach, fielding a new side after the disappointment in Newcastle. Guardiola has already confirmed that both Rodri and Mateo Kovacic remain injured and unavailable, hense their absence from the XI.
We predict Gianluigi Donnarumma to start in goal, supported by a new-look back line of Aït-Nouri, Aké, Stones, and Lewis. Phil Foden should keep his place, while Tijjani Reijnders is expected to come in for Bernardo Silva to offer something different in central areas, a much-needed spark after Sunday’s stagnant midfield display.
Nico González should continue in the CDM role following his impressive recent form, especially with the added pressure of covering for Ballon d’Or winner Rodri. Finally, we predict a front three of Marmoush, Haaland, and Savinho, with both wide players rotated from the weekend in search of some genuine attacking energy.
