John Stones’ fine form earns him a recall, with Benjamin Mendy, Ilkay Gundogan and Kevin De Bruyne also selected.
Riyad Mahrez and Gabriel Jesus also start.
Making way are Oleks Zinchenko, Eric Garcia, Fernandinho, Bernardo, Ferran Torres and Phil Foden.
Teams
City: Ederson, Mendy, Cancelo, Dias, Stones, Rodrigo, Gundogan, De Bruyne (c), Mahrez, Sterling, Jesus
Subs: Steffen, Laporte, Bernardo, Torres, Fernandinho, Foden, Garcia
Fulham: Areola, Aina, Andersen, Adarabioyo, Robinson, Zambo, Reed, Reid, Loftus-Cheek, Lookman, Ivan Cavaleiro.
Subs: Mitrovic, Cairney, Rodak, Ream, Lemina, Bryan, Kamara.
Formation and tactics
City’s front three are likely to swap around at various stages of the game.
Raheem Sterling or Jesus could start as the striker, with both capable of moving out to the flank.
Mahrez will look to follow up last weekend’s hat-trick against Burnley.
Rodrigo will anchor the midfield trio, with De Bruyne and Gundogan more advanced.
Mendy will resume left-back duties with Cancelo at his preferred right-back slot.
Stones and Dias resume what has already looked a solid partnership in recent matches.
Cottagers’ open approach?
Fulham’s impressive 2-1 win at Leicester last weekend mean they arrive at the Etihad in confident mood.
It seems unlikely Scott Parker will instruct his players to camp in their own final third, but he cannot afford to be too open against City.
Fulham have pace up front and may believe that counter-attacks are the best policy.
With the worst defensive record in the top flight, sitting too deep and soaking up too much pressure could lead the visitors into troubled waters.
Stats and facts
City have won our past nine games against Fulham in all competitions by an aggregate score of 27-3.
Fulham are on a 15-match winless run against City in league and cup (D3, L12).
The Whites have gone seven hours and 51 minutes without a goal against City in all competitions.
The sides met in the FA Cup fourth round at Etihad Stadium in January, with City winning 4-0.
City are looking to win successive league games for the first time since a six-match sequence between July and September.
City are unbeaten in their last 39 Premier League home games against promoted opposition (W35, D4).
Riyad Mahrez, with four league goals, is the only player to score more than twice in the top flight for City this term.
If he plays at any stage today, Phil Foden will be making his 50th Premier League appearance. Only two other City players have reached that landmark before their 21st birthday,
Fulham have won two of their past four league matches. They had previously taken just one point from their opening six games.
The Cottagers are attempting successive Premier League away victories for the first time since August 2013.
Scott Parker’s side have seven points after 10 games, which is two more than they had at the same stage of their previous Premier League season in 2018-19.
They have lost 27 of their past 28 Premier League fixtures against the established top-six teams, drawing the other at Manchester United in February 2014.
Fulham have conceded a league-high 19 goals.
They have been awarded five league penalties this season, second only to Leicester’s tally of eight.
We will have full coverage of Saturday’s game right here on ManCity.com.
Our Matchday Centre will get under way at 1pm, with text updates throughout the evening meaning you won’t miss a beat.
Our We’re Not Really Here live matchday show starts at 2pm, with Shaun Wright-Phillips, Shaun Goater and Michael Brown all joining us in the studio.
And CITY+ subscribers can enjoy a full 90-minute replay from midnight.
Enjoy your first month of CITY+ free of charge. After that, CITY+ costs £1.99 a month.
