1 Immediate response
Make no mistake – City must bounce back with a win against Burnley.
The Blues were good for a point at Anfield, no matter what the morning papers say and even though it was a surprisingly incident-free game, City did enough to leave Merseyside with a draw.
Just two shots on target for City is a disappointing stat and Pep Guardiola may consider giving Kelechi Iheanacho or Nolito alongside him up front.
Fernando could also earn a recall with the games coming thick and fast – the Blues lacked a bit of zip and energy against Liverpool and the Brazilian has plenty of that in his locker.
Gael Clichy and Bacary Sagna could also earn a recall to freshen up the back four given the game against Liverpool will have ended less than 48 hours before the Burnley game begins.
2 Clarets’ away woes
If City had planned a pick-me-up result after the Anfield loss, it would surely be against a side who haven’t travelled particularly well this season.
Burnley arrive at the Etihad with the Premier League’s worst away record – one draw and seven losses out of eight – with Sean Dyche seemingly focussing all his team’s survival efforts at Turf Moor where they have won seven games.
That’s not to say the Clarets just turn up to get beaten away – they will pick up points here and there as they go along but the fact they are now four points off seventh-placed Everton is a fantastic achievement.
Home wins ease the pressure and it’s worth noting the only point so far came from a creditable 0-0 draw with Manchester United at Old Trafford.
It will be a full-house and with back-to-back home wins over Middlesbrough and Sunderland, Burnley will be champing at the bit to get stuck into City - though the Blues have already beaten their Lancastrian rivals on their own soil just five weeks ago...
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3 Waiting for Gabriel…
Guardiola was asked when Gabriel Jesus will feature for the Blues and his response was that it could be a few weeks.
The Brazilian will need to acclimatise, meet his new team-mates and get a number of training sessions under his belt to build up his match fitness but it shouldn’t be too long.
Gabriel’s arrival has much anticipated by City fans who are desperate to see him in action – maybe Spurs or Everton is a realistic target for the teenager’s debut.
4 Transfer window open
Will Pep delve into the transfer market this month? The loss of Ilkay Gundogan has been offset by Yaya Toure’s impressive return and Gabriel Jesus will further strengthen the squad.
Fabian Delph is nearing full fitness and Vincent Kompany is also building towards a return – it was great to see the skipper among the travelling City fans at Anfield last night – so it looks as though the Blues will not be active in the market.
But one more long term injury or encouragement from a potential target and maybe things could change.
