Manchester City take on Liverpool in the FA Cup quarter-finals today with Pep Guardiola's side in action for the first time since beating Arsenal at Wembley in the Carabao Cup final.
Rayan Cherki of Manchester City during the Carabao Cup Final match Arsenal and between City at Wembley Stadium
Manchester City star Rayan Cherki impressed in the Carabao Cup final win over Arsenal and could keep his place for the FA Cup tie with Liverpool
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Manchester City return to action on Saturday for the first time since their Wembley win over Arsenal in the Carabao Cup final, seeking to book a return to the capital in the FA Cup.
Liverpool are the visitors to the Etihad in a quarter-final clash and Pep Guardiola's side will be favourites to see off Arne Slot's men, who are having an inconsistent season but remain in the Champions League where they face PSG next week.
City, who have one trophy already in the cabinet this season, will fancy a second cup success of the campaign and will likely line up in a similar fashion to the cup final win over the Gunners.
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James Trafford has been the cup keeper this season and made an impressive triple save at Wembley before going on to make his England debut during the international break. Nico O'Reilly was the matchwinner against Mikel Arteta's side and while he could feature in midfield, it's hard to argue with his place at left back on the back of a cup final double.
Matheus Nunes is first choice on the opposite side while Marc Guehi has cemented his spot in the team and can come back in having missed out at Wembley. Ruben Dias also missed the final through injury but it wasn't thought to be a serious issue and if he's fit then the Portugal international will start, relegating Abdukodir Khusanov and Nathan Ake to the bench. John Stones was on the bench against Arsenal and pulled out of the England squad with an injury so is unlikely to feature.
In midfield, Rodri is set to start on the back of giving an interview which fuelled speculation he could potentially leave for Real Madrid. Bernardo Silva is his likely partner with Rayan Cherki given the nod in the attacking role.
Jeremy Doku caused Liverpool all sorts of problems in the league fixture at the Etihad while Antoine Semenyo has shown his knack for important goals since arriving at City in January. Erling Haaland might be short of goals in 2026 but is a shoo-in up top.
Predicted City XI: Trafford, Nunes, Dias, Guehi, O'Reilly; Rodri, Bernardo, Cherki, Semenyo, Doku, Haaland