Pep Guardiolas men take on Arsenal without their talismanic playmaker Kevin De Bruyne as Spanish boss looks to revive faltering EPL campaign.
Manchester City midfielder Kevin De Bruyne during the English Premier League match against Chelsea in London last June. pic/Getty Images
Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola revealed on Friday that Kevin De Bruyne would miss this weekend's visit of Arsenal after picking up an injury while on international duty. The City playmaker was withdrawn in the second half of Belgium's Nations League defeat against England last Sunday and did not play against Iceland in midweek.
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Guardiola is optimistic De Bruyne will not be sidelined for too long. Speaking ahead of today's tie against Arsenal, Guardiola said: "Unfortunately Kevin is out but the rest of the players they have come back well. I don't think it's much but the next games I think he will be out. But we'll see day-by-day how it's going on."
Who's the boss?
The Catalan praised his former City assistant Mikel Arteta, who has impressed at Arsenal since taking over as manager last December. "We should clarify who is the master and who is the apprentice," he said. "We didn't have any doubts about what he is doing in a short period of time. He settled really well and the special way his team Arsenal is playing right now, he suits perfectly the quality they have. He was able to get Arsenal back to the position they were a long time ago."
Guardiola side are 14th in the table with four points from their first three games.
Everton host Liverpool
Meanwhile, lifted by Carlo Ancelotti's astute leadership and the transformative signing of James Rodriguez, Everton have a golden opportunity to prove their rise to the top of the EPL is no fluke when they face Liverpool today.
Everton have gone 22 matches without a win over Liverpool since their last Merseyside derby success in 2010. But a decade on, Everton finally face their near neighbours from a position of strength, while Liverpool arrive at Goodison Park looking unusually vulnerable.
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