Teams
CITY XI: Ortega Moreno, Lewis, Reis, Ake, O’Reilly, Gundogan, De Bruyne (C), McAtee, Bernardo, Grealish, Foden
Subs: Ederson, Dias, Marmoush, Haaland, Doku, Nico, Gvardiol, Savinho, Nunes
PLYMOUTH ARGYLE XI: Hazard, Mumba, Ogbeta, Pleguzuelo, Wright, Bundo, Gyabi, Boatening, Katic (C), Sorinola, Maxi
Subs: Grimshaw, Houghton, Szucs, Edwards, Puchacz, Al Hajj, Baidoo, Roberts, Palsson
Press conference
The Norwegian winger has been sidelined since August but is back in training and steadily building his fitness back up.
“He is getting better, training yesterday and today as well,” said Guardiola.
“It has been longer than we expected, but hopefully he can finish and help us in the last part of the season.
“We want to help him desperately. It’s been a tough period for him but always there is light at the end of the tunnel, this is life and especially in sport.”
The City boss also revealed Vitor Reis is in contention to feature in our FA Cup 4th round tie with Plymouth Argyle on Saturday afternoon.
The Brazilian made his City debut in the last round away to Leyton Orient and Guardiola says he is in his thinking for Plymouth.
“Vitor played against Orient and yes [he is in contention tomorrow],” he said.
“He is young, came from Brazil, but an incredibly focused central defender.
“Some have physicality, others are clever- and he is one of those.
“He came for a long time, not a short period, like Khusanov. We are pleased with the potential he has.”
Guardiola also confirmed Erling Haaland suffered no reaction to his knee against Spurs (“it’s good”) and that Claudio Echeverri is settling in well.
“Yes he arrived yesterday,” said Pep.
“He has good skills. Welcome! We are going to help and yeah we will see.”
WHEN AND WHERE
We host the Championship side in the FA Cup on Saturday 1 March, with the game scheduled for kick-off at 17:45 (UK) at the Etihad Stadium.
The game will be shown live on ITV 4 and ITV X. You can also keep across all of the action via the official Man City app, as well as the key moments on X/Twitter: @ManCity.
Supporters living around the world can find out how they can tune in via our global listings, courtesy of livesoccertv.com.
Next Fixture
All fixturesFA Cup
GMT
MAN CITY APP COVERAGE
Our official Man City app allows you to follow all of the action from Manchester in one place.
Minute-by-minute text updates will begin in our Matchday Centre two hours before kick-off, while our Matchday Live show will begin at around 16:30 (UK).
Andy Morrison and Peter Reid will be the guests on the latest Matchday Live show, offering their expert insight before, during and after the action.
During the game CITY+ subscribers can also listen to live audio commentary from Alistair Mann and Nicky Weaver while our text commentary continues. FA Cup regulations dictate that our radio commentary for matches against lower league sides in this competition must be behind a paywall.
Make sure to have push notifications turned on as well, so you can be alerted to key moments in the action, including goals, red cards and the team news.
Both a shortened and extended highlights package can be accessed from 12:00 on Sunday 2 March, while a full-match replay (via CITY+) will follow from midnight.
PREVIOUS MEETING
We last faced Plymouth in a Division Two league clash back in February 1989, where we claimed a 2-0 victory at Maine Road thanks to goals from Neil McNab and Wayne Biggins, taking us to the top of the table.
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LAST TIME OUT
We progressed from the fourth round of the FA Cup by coming from a goal behind to eliminate Leyton Orient.
The home side took a first-half lead in spectacular fashion after Stefan Ortega Moreno deflected a long-range chip into his own net.
The League One side were punching well above their weight and deservedly led at the break, but City fought back after the break with goals from Abdukodir Khusanov and Kevin De Bruyne to progress.
In league terms, we secured a 1-0 victory away to Tottenham Hotspur on Wednesday evening to move back into fourth place in the Premier League.
As for Plymouth, they reached this stage of the competition in stunning fashion, beating Premier League leaders Liverpool 1-0 at Home Park, but their last league game last Saturday ended in a 1-1 draw with Cardiff City.
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MATCH OFFICIALS
Referee: Craig Pawson
Assistant referees: Scott Ledger and Craig Taylor
Fourth official: Darren Bond
VAR: Neil Davies Assistant VAR: Constantine Hatzidakis
Support VAR: Peter Bankes
GLOBAL TV LISTINGS
Supporters around the world can find out how to tune in to watch the match live by clicking here, courtesy of livesoccertv.com.
(Listings correct as of 27 February)
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