Manchester City have no fresh injury concerns ahead of Saturday’s FA Cup fifth round tie against Plymouth, but Claudio Echeverri faces a wait to make his debut
Man City returned to winning ways on Wednesday night by beating Tottenham as the fit-again Erling Haaland scored the only goal of the game.
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The added bonus was that Pep Guardiola reported no new injuries after the game which suggests he will have a near fully fit squad to choose from for the FA Cup clash with Plymouth.
John Stones, Manuel Akanji and Rodri will play no part at the weekend, whilst the tie is likely to come too soon for Oscar Bobb, who has returned to training suffering a setback in his bid to return from a broken leg.
This week has seen Man City finally unveil Argentinian wonderkid Claudio Echeverri.
The 19-year-old signed for City last January but was loaned back to River Plate to help continue his development. And after starring for his nation at the recent Under-20 South American Championship, he has officially joined up with the squad.
Though, it seems Guardiola will hold off on handing Echeverri a debut.
Asked at his pre-match press conference if Echeverri will feature this season, Guardiola said: "I don't know. He arrived with two months left in the season and every game is a final for us.
“Now are are fourth but if we don't get results we are sixth or seventh. We lose one or two games right now we go down to eighth. When things are so tight every game is a final.”
Fellow recent Man City recruits Abdukodir Khusanov, Nico Gonzalez, Omar Marmoush and Vitor Reis are all available to start and may get selected with Ruben Dias and Haaland potentially rested following their injury issues.
Stefan Ortega is likely to get the nod in between the posts as Ederson makes way. Nico O’Reilly has started both FA Cup ties for City so far this season and could be handed another opportunity at left-back.
Guardiola has an abundance of riches in midfield as Kevin De Bruyne, Phil Foden, Jack Grealish, Ilkay Gundogan, James McAtee and Bernardo Silva are pushing to start.
Man City predicted XI: Ortega; Lewis, Khusanov, Reis, O'Reilly; Nico, Gundogan; Foden, McAtee, Doku; Marmoush
Injured: Ake, Rodri, Bobb, Stones
Time and date: 5.45pm GMT on Saturday, March 1, 2025.
Venue: Etihad Stadium, Manchester
TV channel and live stream: ITV4
