Man City host Liverpool tonight in a game that might go a long way to deciding where the Premier League title will go.
And City could be boosted by the return of arguably their best player: Kevin de Bruyne.
The Belgian missed Sunday’s 3-1 win against Southampton with a muscle injury, but has returned to training.
Pep Guardiola is desperate to start the Belgian against Jurgen Klopp’s Premier League leaders, but will not risk his long-term fitness after missing him for the majority of the season with two separate knee ligament injuries.
Liverpool, meanwhile, welcome back former City man James Milner for tonight’s trip to the Etihad.
The midfielder missed the Reds’ wins over Newcastle United and Arsenal after suffering a recurrence of a hamstring issue.
But he is in contention to face his former club on Thursday in a game that could go a long way to deciding the destination of this season’s Premier League title.
Apart from Dominic Solanke (groin), who is line for a January loan move, Klopp has no other fresh injury concerns ahead of the trip to the Etihad Stadium.
The Reds could go 10 points clear of the reigning champions with a win in Manchester, but will be pulled back into a tight title race in the event of a defeat.
Man City vs Liverpool: Predicted line-ups for tonight’s Premier League clash at the Etihad
Man City (4-3-3): Ederson; Walker, Stones, Laporte, Zinchenko; Fernandinho, De Bruyne, Silva; Mahrez, Aguero, Sterling
Liverpool (4-3-3): Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Lovren, Van Dijk, Robertson; Wijnaldum, Fabinho, Henderson; Salah, Mane, Firmino.
Predict the result!
