Manchester City kick-off their Premier League title defence against Arsenal, with many of their players still short of fitness but seemingly in fine form.
Pep Guardiola named a strong line-up for last weekend's Community Shield victory over Chelsea, choosing several first-team players who had previously not featured on the US tour during the International Champions Cup.
Kevin De Bruyne and David Silva are among the big names yet to feature this summer, but City have plenty of options.
Man City injuries
David Silva missed Sunday's game against Chelsea with an injury and it is currently unknown whether he will return against Arsenal. Another factor to consider is Bernardo Silva's fine pre-season form in midfield.
Danilo is set to miss the first few games of the season with an ankle injury he picked up during the World Cup.
Next Match
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Man City suspensions
Neither side have any suspensions.
Man City potential starting line-up
Ederson has not yet played in pre-season but will surely come back into the side at the Emirates Stadium.
Kyle Walker and Benjamin Mendy started at full-back at Wembley and seem good bets to do so again. In the middle of defence it is harder to predict given City have four viable options, and Guardiola is likely to pick based on the opposition. John Stones and Aymeric Laporte performed well against Chelsea, and given Arsenal may show a similar sense of adventure against City it would make sense if those two started yet again.
Fernandinho is the first choice for the defensive midfield role, though ahead of him it is harder to predict. Guardiola says his team is currently "Bernardo Silva plus 10 more", suggesting the Portuguese will start in midfield. De Bruyne did not play for City in pre-season but he is the closest to the club's star man and it would be a safe bet to expect him to start the season.
Up front is also hard to predict, although the three that started a week ago could easily do so again.
Arsenal team news
Unai Emery will be without Sead Kolasinac and Laurent Koscielny for his first competitive game as Arsenal boss.
Nacho Monreal is also doubtful with a knee injury, meaning Ainsley Maitland-Niles could start at left-back.
New signing Bernd Leno has been picked for three of Arsenal's five friendlies as he looks to claim the No.1 spot from Petr Cech. Fellow new boy Sokratis is also in line to start, with Shkodran Mustafi beside him at the heart of the defence.
Lucas Torreira, another new signing, could make his debut in midfield.
TV coverage & kick-off time
Kick-off is 4pm BST (11am ET) on Sunday August 12, and the game will be shown on Sky Sports in the United Kingdom. It will be shown on NBC in the United States, and on various channels around the world.
Opta match facts
- Manchester City are unbeaten in their last nine opening Premier League fixtures (W8 D1), winning the last seven in a row.
- Arsenal are without a victory in their last five league meetings with Manchester City (D2 L3), and have won just two of their last 12 against the Blues (D5 L5).
- At the Emirates, Arsenal have enjoyed just one win in their last six league clashes with Man City (D3 L2), courtesy of a 2-1 win in December 2015.
- The reigning Premier League champions have lost their opening game in each of the last two campaigns – this has never happened in three consecutive seasons in English top-flight history.
- This is the seventh consecutive season that Arsenal have kicked off a Premier League campaign with a home game, but they’ve only won two of the previous six (W2 D1 L3).
- Manchester City have won 17 of their last 20 away Premier League games (D2 L1), including the last six in a row.
- Pep Guardiola and Unai Emery met 10 times in all competitions during their spells in Spain, with Guardiola never losing in those meetings (W6 D4 L0).
- Arsenal are beginning a league season against the reigning top-flight champions for the first time since the 1970-71 campaign, when they drew 2-2 at Everton on the opening day.
