Manchester City return to Premier League action on Saturday as they travel to Birmingham to face in-form Aston Villa in the hope of maintaining their flawless domestic record.
Last time out, City produced a five-star display under the UEFA Champions League lights, seeing off Greek outfit AEK Athens by a scoreline of five goals to one, as Phil Foden netted his fourth hat-trick in sky blue and Rayan Cherki was at his scintillating best.
Eliott Anderson got Enzo Maresca's men off the mark on the night, scoring his first goal in sky blue from point-blank range before Foden slotted the ball into the roof of the net and beyond Alberto Brignoli to give the Blues a 2-0 lead inside 34 minutes.
Seven minutes after the restart, AEK Athens reduced the arrears as left-back Stavros Pilios steered his strike across Gianlugi Donnarumma and into the back of the Manchester City net, seeing the visitors score with their first effort on target.
In the 57th minute, however, some sublime skill by Cherki to evade the challenge of Kervin Arriaga on the edge of the 18-yard box allowed City's fantastic Frenchman to curl home effortlessly and restore the Blues' two-goal cushion.
Subsequently, a ball from Rico Lewis into the path of the onrushing Foden enabled City's beloved No. 47 to unleash a blistering, inch-perfect strike into the top corner and stylishly send the home side into a 4-1 lead.
Finally, with 14 minutes of the 90 to play, an excellent ball from CFA graduate Ryan McAidoo presented Foden with the simplest of finishes into a gaping AEK Athens net, capping off a magnificent Manchester City display and securing his first UEFA Champions League hat-trick.
Now, City turn their attention to league affairs, and with a perfect record of 21 points from a possible 21 thus far, Maresca's side find themselves at the summit of the division, three points clear of Mikel Arteta's Arsenal, as they travel to Villa Park on Saturday.
Unai Emery's men come into the clash in a rich vein of form with six wins and one draw from their last seven fixtures across competitions, most recently securing a 3-1 home victory against UEFA Champions League opposition Viking on Wednesday.
The last meeting between these two sides came on the final day of the 2025-26 campaign, as an Ollie Watkins brace cancelled out Antoine Semenyo's first-half strike, and saw the Villans run out 2-1 victors at the Etihad Stadium, denying Pep Guardiola's farewell victory in his final game in charge of the club.
For Manchester City, injury concerns continue to rear their ugly head as Matheus Nunes, Mateo Kovacic, Nico O'Reilly and Antoine Semenyo were all absent from the matchday squad against AEK Athens, with the latter reported to be sidelined for eight weeks.
The fitness of Josko Gvardiol is also somewhat uncertain, as the Croatian reportedly felt a minor issue in his back in the warm-up on Tuesday night, but nevertheless, the former RB Leipzig man managed 72 minutes.
Here is how we predict Enzo Maresca will line up Manchester City to face off against Aston Villa this weekend!
Predicted XI
Gianluigi Donnarumma will occupy the Manchester City goal at Villa Park in a decision that seems somewhat of a forgone conclusion, as the Italian will be optimistic of keeping a third successive clean sheet away from home in the Premier League after barring the door at both Old Trafford and Anfield.
At right back, after his absence from the squad in midweek owing to an injury he picked up against Ipswich Town, Matheus Nunes looks set to make a return as the Portugal international has established himself as a mainstay in the starting XI, proving his ability to excel in both attacking and defensive situations.
Club captain Ruben Dias is expected to get the nod from Maresca at centre-back alongside Marc Guehi, as the pair certainly seem to be the favoured pairing by the Italian head coach, as both defenders have played all 630 minutes of the Blues' Premier League season so far.
Despite Guehi's poor individual performance by his own exceptional standards against Ipswich Town, the England international remains an outstanding central defender and a pivotal figure in this Manchester City side.
Completing the back four, Croatia international Josko Gvardiol is expected to be named on Maresca's team sheet at Villa Park, as with Nico O'Reilly absent from the Manchester City squad in midweek due to the back problem he sustained in early September. City's No. 24 looks likely to be in from the start.
Despite an injury concern, Gvardiol should be fit and available for the weekend, according to the 46-year-old head coach, who said after the midweek win: "He [Gvardiol] is okay, he had a small problem during the warm-up in his back - but he could play and he was okay."
In the engine room a £241 million duo of Enzo Fernandez and Elliot Anderson is likely to be deployed in Birmingham, as the pair have been selected alongside each other in four of the last five league outings, and it seems probable that this trend persists.
Operating ahead of this double pivot, who else but Manchester City's marvellous maverick Rayan Cherki, who, following an exemplary performance against AEK Athens, will be determined to pick up where he left off and add to his tally of eight goal contributions in 11 games across competitions this term.
Leading the line, a huge boost for City, as inevitable talisman Erling Haaland is fit and available for his side's trip to the midlands in spite of a suspected ankle injury which saw him rested against AEK Athens.
The Norwegian is simply indispensable for Manchester City, with the 26-year-old already scoring a phenomenal 12 goals in 10 games across competitions this campaign, and the value he provides the sky blues needs no explanation.
At the left wing, Belgian speedster Jeremy Doku should be named in the starting XI, as the 24-year-old's attacking prowess is simply invaluable to Manchester City, with two goal contributions in just 126 league minutes so far this term.
Defending the No. 11 is seemingly proving to be mission impossible for the majority of Premier League full backs, and he will be tasked by Maresca to give those of an Aston Villa persuasion just as tough a challenge.
Starting XI: Donnarumma; Nunes, Dias, Guehi, Gvardiol; Fernandez, Anderson, Cherki; Foden, Haaland, Doku
Substitutes: Rulli, Khusanov, O'Reilly, Ait-Nouri, Lewis, Bouaddi, Allan, Ndiaye, McAidoo