Chelsea vs Man City: Preview, predictions and team news

Chelsea face the toughest test of their pre-season tour to date when they take on Premier League champions Manchester City in the United States this Saturday.

The Blues made a disappointing start to the Enzo Maresca era following a 2-2 draw with League One Wrexham and a 4-1 demolition at the hands of Glasgow outfit Celtic. However, they somewhat redeemed themselves in their third pre-season outing, beating Mexico's Club America 3-0 thanks to two penalties and a Marc Guiu strike.

Man City's poor start to pre-season can be mitigated by their lack of available first-team players. The majority of Pep Guardiola's US tour squad is currently made up of academy stars, even if the likes of Erling Haaland and Ederson are available. High-scoring defeats to Celtic and Milan were followed by a 2-2 draw with Barcelona most recently.

Here's 90min's guide to Chelsea vs Man City this weekend.

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Chelsea vs Man City H2H Record (Last Five Games)

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How to watch Chelsea vs Man City on TV and live stream

Chelsea team news

Chelsea are still without Conor Gallagher, Cole Palmer and Marc Cucurella as they recover from Euro 2024, but Enzo Fernandez has returned to the squad following his Copa America triumph with Argentina this summer.

New summer signings have seen plenty of minutes, too. Tosin Adarabioyo, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, Renato Veiga and Marc Guiu have all enjoyed run-outs, with the latter particularly impressing leading the line. Filip Jorgensen made his debut against Club America after recently signing from Villarreal.

Maresca has played around with his formation and tactical setup in pre-season but reverted to a 4-2-3-1 against Club America. Reece James returned to the defence after being deployed in midfield previously, while Wesley Fofana and Romeo Lavia got more minutes under their belt following long injury layoffs last term.

Chelsea predicted lineup vs Man City

Chelsea predicted lineup vs Man City (4-2-3-1): Jorgensen; James, Fofana, Badiashile, Gusto; Lavia, Dewsbury-Hall; Madueke, Nkunku, Mudryk; Guiu.

Man City team news

Man City haven't got their usual wealth of superstars available at present and Guardiola has had to get creative with his starting lineups. Kalvin Phillips operated as a centre-back against Barcelona last time out, while youngsters have also been used to plug gaps in the team.

Oscar Bobb has been mightily impressive in pre-season and will start once again on the right flank, with Jack Grealish located on the other side. Mateo Kovacic and Josko Gvardiol will also feature, while Erling Haaland will lead the line if he is deemed fit.

Man City remain without the majority of their summer internationals, including the England trio of Kyle Walker, John Stones and Phil Foden.

Man City predicted lineup vs Chelsea (4-2-3-1): Ederson; Lewis, Phillips, Gvardiol, Wilson-Esbrand; O'Reilly, Perrone; Bobb, Kovacic, Grealish; Haaland.

Chelsea vs Man City score prediction

Given the chaotic pre-season both sides have endured up until this point, expect some more drama in Ohio this weekend. There should be goals and it should be the Blues who are more prolific given the superior squad depth they currently boast on their US tour.

Man City are Man City, though. Even a squad full of youngsters has enough talent to cause Chelsea huge issues, with the Cityzens having scored at least twice in all three of their friendlies.