Man City lineup vs. Aston Villa: Projected starting XI, team news, injury list for Premier League game
Man City lineup vs. Aston Villa: Projected starting XI, team news, injury list for Premier League game originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
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Man City projected lineup vs. Aston Villa
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Man City vs. Aston Villa match details
Manchester City extended their unbeaten run across all competitions to nine matches in midweek when they eased to a 2-0 UEFA Champions League win over Villarreal.
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Erling Haaland opened the scoring with his 24th goal in just 14 games for club and country this season. Bernardo Silva doubled the advantage before halftime.
After failing to win any of their first six games this term, Aston Villa strung together five victories in succession heading into Thursday’s Europa League match against Go Ahead Eagles.
Last weekend, Unai Emery’s men came from behind to beat Tottenham 2-1 away from home and they have won the past two editions of this fixture at Villa Park.
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Man City lineup vs. Aston Villa: Projected starting XI
Donnarumma (GK)
Nunes, Dias, Gvardiol, O’Reilly
Nico
Savinho, Foden, Silva, Doku
Haaland
Formation: 4-1-4-1
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Man City team news
Pep Guardiola rotated his XI at Villarreal, with Phil Foden and Nico O’Reilly among those to drop to the bench.
The two Englishmen are likely to come back in, with Josko Gvardiol moving back to central defence alongside Ruben Dias to accommodate O’Reilly, who was an unused sub at Estadio de la Ceramica after suffering a knock during the 2-0 win over Everton.
Captain Bernardo Silva is tipped to retain his place in central midfield, in light of Tijjani Reijnders’ patchy form and injury doubts surrounding Nico Gonzalez. Assuming he is fit, the latter will start this game in place of Rodri, who missed this very fixture in each of the past two seasons.
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Man City injury list
Below is the latest injury picture for Man City, and estimated return dates for those who are sidelined.
Rodri
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Expected return date: November 2, 2025
Spain midfielder Rodri has suffered a handful of injury setbacks since returning from ACL surgery.
Guardiola confirmed last weekend that he would miss the Villarreal and Villa matches. With a Carabao Cup trip to Swansea City offering a further chance for recuperation, in-form Bournemouth‘s visit to the Etihad Stadium on November 2 is his likely target.
Suspension and injury respectively ruled Rodri out of City’s 2023 and 2024 defeats at Villa Park.
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Nico Gonzalez
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Expected return date: October 26, 2025
Nico had a tricky start to life at City after joining from Porto in January, but he has thrived at the base of the midfield as an able deputy for Rodri this season.
The former Barcelona youngster was forced off with an hour played at Villarreal after he suffered a foot injury in a challenge with Thomas Partey.
The hope is that he has merely suffered an impact injury and the four full days between the two games act in his favour.
Abdukodir Khusanov
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Expected return date: October 26, 2025
Uzbekistan defender Khusanov has not featured since suffering an ankle injury during the 1-1 draw at Arsenal last month.
The 21-year-old is closing in on a return, and his physicality and recovery pace would certainly be an asset against Villa.
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However, the looming threat of Bournemouth star Antoine Semenyo next weekend means Khusanov could be held back for that assignment.
Aston Villa vs. Man City match details
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Date: Sunday, October 26, 2025
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Kickoff time: 2 p.m. local / 9 a.m. ET / 6 a.m. PT / 12 a.m. AEDT (Oct. 26)
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Location: Villa Park, Manchester (England)
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Competition: Premier League matchweek nine
