It was something of a surprise to see Ruben Dias, Joao Cancelo and Nathan Ake play 45 minutes of Manchester City’s first friendly on Tuesday.
The trio had only returned to training the previous day, and hadn’t been expected to feature against Preston at all, let alone play the first half. In an ideal world, those senior players wouldn’t have been needed at all.
As would be anticipated from a first friendly, there was a completely different outfield team in the second half, with plenty of academy youngsters getting the chance to impress in the second half and give Dias and co. a valuable rest.
That managed workload looks set to continue right up until the Premier League opener at Tottenham.
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After the game, Pep Guardiola admitted that fitness levels of his key players meant that he would have to call upon a ‘second team’ of players for next weekend’s Community Shield clash against Leicester.
He said: “I know we don’t have time because in 10 or 11 days we have the Community Shield, but we’re going to play with a second team and we’re going to train. For everybody, it’s a tough season. Every season is so tough, demanding and important.”
It’s likely that Guardiola means there will be a mix of first teamers and under-23s playing at Wembley, rather than a full EDS outfit, but it’s interesting to hear that a game of that magnitude still won’t see City rush back any players who are yet to return.
That means that City’s Community Shield squad could well be made up of players who faced Preston, which could mean a solid defence but weak midfield.
Zack Steffen, who has recovered from an injury picked up with the USA at the beginning of the summer, started against Preston and should get the chance to play in a second Wembley final for City.
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Cancelo, Dias and Ake will all have two weeks of training under their belts so should be okay to start, while Benjamin Mendy will have had three weeks and should be the fittest of the lot.
In reserve, Philippe Sandler and Yan Couto are most likely to provide back-up, while players like Aleks Zinchenko could also make the bench if they return sooner rather than later.
Fernandinho has been back in pre-season from the start so should captain the side against Leicester, but that is where the experienced options in midfield start and stop.
Tommy Doyle and Claudio Gomes could provide a youthful partnership, with Gomes making his debut in the Community Shield back in 2018. Ilkay Gundogan, who exited Euro 2020 before Rodri and Kevin De Bruyne, might be an option depending on fitness
Into attack, Riyad Mahrez will almost certainly start, while Bernardo Silva could be available. However, Bernardo didn’t return with Portugal teammates Dias and Cancelo on Monday, so will be a few days behind them fitness-wise.
Liam Delap or Cole Palmer could take the final spot, subject to formation, with Phil Foden and Raheem Sterling set to miss the game after their Euro 2020 exploits.
On the bench, Ben Knight, Sam Edozie, and James McAtee could be rewarded for promising senior debuts against Preston with a Wembley matchday role.
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