Manchester United squad vs Man City: “Beautiful” goalscorer dropped as four changes expected

Rúben Amorim is expected to drop four players from his Manchester United squad as they prepare to face Manchester City in the Premier League on Sunday afternoon.

Rúben Amorim is readying Manchester United for a massive Premier League showdown against Manchester City, a crucial challenge for the new head coach.

United come into the game with momentum following a 2-1 comeback victory over FC Viktoria Plzeň in the Europa League, courtesy of a brace from substitute Rasmus Højlund. Now, attention shifts back to domestic competition during a busy festive period.

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Manchester City are in the midst of a turbulent run, with just one win in their last ten games across all competitions. Earlier this season, Pep Guardiola’s side suffered a humbling 4-1 defeat to Amorim’s Sporting, a result that signaled cracks in their dominance.

As City’s hopes of a fifth consecutive Premier League title continue to dwindle, United will aim to deepen their rivals’ struggles and climb up from 13th place when the two sides meet at the Etihad Stadium.

Four changes expected

Rúben Amorim will have to drop three players from his 24-man squad that faced Plzen on Thursday evening, as the Premier League only allow 20 players to be selected for matchday squads.

Despite coming off the bench in midweek, Antony is expected to step out of the squad that travels to the stadium, where he scored a “beautiful” goal during his opening weeks at the club in 2022. He was not included in United’s last Premier League squad, either.

Beyond this, Toby Collyer, Victor Lindelöf, and Tom Heaton are also expected not to be selected for the travelling squad on Sunday afternoon.

Collyer has only just returned to training and sits at the bottom of the midfield pecking order with everyone else available in the position, while Lindelöf is in a similar position regarding the club’s centre-backs.

Heaton only fills in as a third-choice goalkeeper when extra bodies are needed in the squad.

Jonny Evans is also not expected to be selected, as he has only returned to training on Wednesday and missed out on the midweek trip to the Czech Republic.

Amorim did confirm that he feels he will have his whole squad available, although it’s unclear whether or not this includes Luke Shaw, so he has been left our of the expected squad below.

Expected Man United squad

Goalkeepers: André Onana, Altay Bayındır.
Defenders: Diogo Dalot, Noussair Mazraoui, Leny Yoro, Lisandro Martínez, Harry Maguire, Matthijs de Ligt, Tyrell Malacia.
Midfielders: Manuel Ugarte, Kobbie Mainoo, Casemiro, Bruno Fernandes, Mason Mount, Christian Eriksen.
Forwards: Rasmus Højlund, Amad Diallo, Alejandro Garnacho, Joshua Zirkzee, Marcus Rashford.

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