Man City vs Salford City LIVE: FA Cup team news and line-ups as City ring changes for unique Manchester derby | OneFootball

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TV punditry not a problem for Guardiola

Manchester City host Salford City in the FA Cup third round today, with the hosts looking like they’ve put their unprecedented run of bad form behind them.

Pep Guardiola’s team have won their last two matches, having previously suffered a run of just one win in thirteen games which saw them fall to sixth in the league.

And they welcome a Salford City side who are sitting third in League Two and dreaming of a historic upset.

The minnows were in the eighth tier of English football just 10 seasons ago, but the new ownership – partly consisting of members of Manchester United’s ‘Class of ‘92’ – has seen the club gain four promotions while staying in the hunt for another one this season.

Guardiola: “I will be playing against my neighbourhood"

In his pre-match press conference, Pep Guardiola refused to comment on rumours surrounding potential signings, before adding that he has “lived in Salford for the past eight years so I will be playing against my neighbourhood, my home town”.

“The past six games, six clean sheets and six victories, so I have huge respect for them and what they do - the intensity - and we will take it seriously, like we always have done,” he said.

On Salford’s ownership, he added: “I saw Gary Neville. I don’t know all the other players involved but they are smart people, I’m sure of that, and when people from football run clubs they take smart decisions.”

Chris Wilson11 January 2025 17:10

Match facts

This is Salford City’s third meeting with Premier League opposition in all competitions, previously losing 3-0 against Everton (September 2020) and 4-0 against Burnley (September 2023).

Manchester City haven’t been eliminated at this stage of the FA Cup since 2011-12, when they lost 3-2 at home to Manchester United. Including replays, they’ve won their last 11 FA Cup third round matches by an aggregate score of 46-4.

Chris Wilson11 January 2025 17:07

Pep Guardiola: I’ll leave punditry and club ownership to likes of Gary Neville

Pep Guardiola is happy to leave the worlds of punditry and club ownership to the likes of Gary Neville.

The Manchester City boss will welcome Neville to the Etihad Stadium on Saturday as the champions host the former Manchester United star’s Salford team in the FA Cup third round.

Neville, who owns the League Two outfit along with other members of United’s famous ‘Class of 92’, has carved out successful careers in football punditry and business since retiring.

Pep Guardiola: I’ll leave punditry and club ownership to likes of Gary Neville

The City boss will welcome Neville to the Etihad Stadium on Saturday as the champions host the former Manchester United star’s Salford team.

Chris Wilson11 January 2025 17:03

Team news

Salford have made two changes to the side that beat MK Dons 1-0 last week. In midfield, Ryan Watson is replaced by Matty Lund, while in attack, Cole Stockton comes out for Kylian Kouassi.

Chris Wilson11 January 2025 16:59

Early team news

The line-ups will be announced in five minutes, so here’s a reminder of the early team news.

There are no new injury concerns for City after the win over West Ham, and Guardiola may even be welcoming back Ederson and Ruben Dias after their respective injury lay-offs.

Nevertheless, neither player would be expected to start here, with Ortega likely to deputise in goal, while Jahmai Simpson-Pusey should feature at centre-back. Whether guardiola opts to use Josko Gvardiol, Nathan Ake, Manuel Akanji or a young player – such as Max Alleyne – remains to be seen.

In midfield, expect to see Mateo Kovacic and Ilkay Gundogan rested, with Nico O’Reilly potentially featuring as he did in the Community Shield.

Guardiola will also likely make changes to the forward line, with James McAtee and Jack Grealish likely to feature, while Erling Haaland could be rested in favour of 20-year-old striker Divin Mubama.

Chris Wilson11 January 2025 16:40

Salford City’s ownership

Salford have existed in several iterations since the 1940s, and became professional in 2017. They were taken over by the members of Manchester United’s ‘Class of ‘92’ – including Gary Neville, David Beckham and Ryan Giggs – in 2014, and since then have won several promotions to take them into the Football League. They now sit in third in League Two, and firmly in contention for promotion.

The side have won four promotions since the group took over in 2014, and they enter the weekend in third place, level on points with second-placed Crewe Alexandra (but 10 points behind Walsall in first).

Chris Wilson11 January 2025 16:35

Unsurprisingly, this is the first ever meeting between Manchester City and Salford City. It is also the League Two side’s first every appearance in the FA Cup third round.

City have won their past 17 matches when facing an opponent for the first time in all competitions since a 2-1 loss to Lyon in September 2018.

Chris Wilson