City u18s resume their Barclays u18 Premier League campaign when they entertain Aston Villa at Platt Lane on Saturday afternoon.
Adam Sadler’s men are only one game into phase 2 of the season after the postponements of matches against Norwich City and Middlesbrough.
City lost their first match of the phase in unfortunate circumstances after a last minute sucker punch from Newcastle United in the 3-2 defeat on 12 January.
It remains to be seen what pool of players Sadler will have to choose from but competition for places will be fierce, with an FA Youth Cup fifth round tie against Derby County on the horizon on 26 February.
Aston Villa are managed by Tony McAndrew, the former Middlesbrough defender who has been in charge since 1999.
The Villains finished in sixth place in National Group 2 in phase 1, behind Manchester United, Spurs and group-winners Southampton.
We’ll bring you team news and live goal updates on Twitter, as well as a full match report from the game on Saturday afternoon.
