Pep Guardiola has named a side including six World Cup stars to face Liverpool in tonight's Carabao Cup fourth round clash.

Manuel Akanji, Nathan Ake, Kevin De Bruyne, Ilkay Gundogan Aymeric Laporte and Rodrigo all go straight into the team upon their return from Qatar.

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They are joined in the starting XI by Stefan Ortega Moreno, Rico Lewis, Riyad Mahrez, Cole Palmer and Erling Haaland who have remained in training with the club during the break.

Should they be required, we also have plenty of options off the bench with another six of our World Cup contingent ready and waiting.

This is the first time Pep Guardiola‘s side have been in competitive action since the Premier League defeat to Brentford on 12 November.

Teams

CITY XI: Ortega Moreno, Lewis, Akanji, Laporte, Ake, Rodrigo, De Bruyne, Gundogan (c), Mahrez, Palmer, Haaland

Subs: Carson, Walker, Stones, Cancelo, Grealish, Gomez, Silva, Foden, Robertson

LIVERPOOL XI: Kelleher, Milner, Gomez, Matip, Robertson, Bajcetic, Thiago, Elliott, Carvalho, Salah, Nunez

Subs: Adrian, Fabinho, Keita, Henderson, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Tsimikas, Ramsay, Phillips, Doak

Tactics

Stefan Ortega Moreno will be between the sticks.

Rico Lewis will be on the right of the defence. Manuel Akanji is expected to be partnered by Aymeric Laporte in the middle of the back line while Nathan Ake is on the left.

Rodrigo takes up his usual position at the base of midfield with Kevin De Bruyne and captain Ilkay Gundogan on either side of him.

Riyad Mahrez and Cole Palmer will be on the wings and looking to supply central striker Erling Haaland.

Strong side

When we defeated Chelsea in November and tonight’s fixture was arranged so close to the end of the World Cup, few could have predicted we would field such a high quality line-up for this one.

Kevin De Bruyne and Ilkay Gundogan looked strong in last week’s friendly with Girona after painful early exits from the World Cup.

Meanwhile, it’s a quick turnaround for the likes of Manuel Akanji, Nathan Ake, Aymeric Laporte and Rodrigo who have only been back in training at the CFA this week.

Match stats

  • Manchester City have won just one of our seven League Cup games against Liverpool (D3 L3), winning 3-2 in the third round in 1969-70. However, the last such meeting between the sides was in the 2016 final, with City winning 3-1 on penalties following a 1-1 draw.
  • Liverpool have won just one of their last seven away games against Man City in all competitions (D3 L3), 2-1 in the Champions League in April 2018.
  • Man City were knocked out by West Ham at this stage of the League Cup last season, last failing to make the quarter-final in consecutive campaigns between 2001-02 and 2006-07.
  • Liverpool have kept a clean sheet in seven of their last eight League Cup matches, including each of the last four in a row. Only once have they gone five without conceding in the competition, doing so between February and October 1984.
  • This is the first time Man City are facing the holders of the League Cup since 2011-12, when we beat Birmingham City 2-0 in the third round. The only time they’ve faced Liverpool as holders in the competition was a 4-0 loss in October 1995.
  • No side has been involved in more penalty shootouts in the League Cup than Liverpool (15), with the Reds’ last two games in the competition being settled by this method.