Fit-again Cancelo was an unused substitute against Arsenal on Saturday, but has replaced Benjamin Mendy in defence, whilst Pep Guardiola has also recalled Phil Foden, Rodrigo and Bernardo Silva.
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The City boss has named a strong side against the struggling Hornets, with Kyle Walker, Eric Garcia and Aymeric Laporte retaining their place in defence.
Kevin De Bruyne captain’s the team, whilst Raheem Sterling and Gabriel Jesus are also named in the starting XI.
Mendy, Ilkay Gundogan, David Silva and Riyad Mahrez all started at Wembley, but are amongst the substitutes this evening.
Lineups
CITY XI: Ederson, Walker, Garcia, Laporte, Cancelo, Rodrigo, De Bruyne (C), Bernardo, Foden, Sterling, Jesus.
SUBS: Carson, Stones, Gundogan, Zinchenko, Silva, Mendy, Fernandinho, Mahrez, Otamendi.
WATFORD XI: Foster, Mariappa, Kabasele, Dawson, Femenia, Doucoure, Cleverley, Hughes, Sarr, Pereyra, Deeney.
SUBS: Gomes, Welbeck, Masina, Chalobah, Cathcart, Joao Pedro, Gray, Quina, Pussetto.
Formation
It looks like Guardiola has opted for his preferred 4-3-3, with Cancelo replacing Mendy at left-back.
Ordinarily a right-back, the Portuguese defender has played on the opposite side on occasion this season.
He and Walker will flank Garcia and Laporte at centre-half, with Rodrigo just in front of them in the midfield anchor role.
De Bruyne and Bernardo will operate ahead of the Spaniard, whilst Foden and Sterling will play either side of Jesus.
Looking for a response
Guardiola expressed his excitement at the prospect of next month’s Champions League clash against Real Madrid.
It is priority number one for the remainder of this season, but the preparations start with this game and he made it clear at his pre-match press conference that he wants to see a reaction to the Arsenal defeat.
“To come back to who we are,” he replied when asked what he expects to see.
“We are good when we go full gas, when we are a team with no fear.”
City have bounced back with victory after every loss this season, beating Watford 8-0 following our 3-2 defeat to Norwich City in September.
Another full throttle performance would give the boss what he desires and give us a platform to build on ahead of the Madrid tie.
Ref Watch
Michael Oliver is the man in the middle this evening.
This is the fifth time he has refereed a City game this season, with his most recent match being our 1-0 win over Sheffield Wednesday in the FA Cup fifth round back in March.
He’s issued nine yellow cards in those matches and no reds.
Stats and facts
- City are on a 12-match winning streak against Watford with an overall aggregate score of 46-6.
- We are unbeaten in our last 17 meetings with the Hornets in all competitions (W15, D2). Watford’s most recent victory was a 1-0 home triumph in the second tier in March 1989.
- If we score four times, we will equal the Premier League record for goals against an opponent in a season, having won 8-0 in the reverse fixture. Blackburn Rovers scored 12 times against Nottingham Forest in 1995/96, and Spurs matched that figure against Wigan Athletic in 2009/10.
- City have accrued a league-high 18 points since the restart and scored a division-best 25 goals. Our 93 Premier League goals to date are at least 16 more than any other club.
- Riyad Mahrez has scored in seven of his nine league appearances against Watford.
- Raheem Sterling has been involved in six goals in his last two matches against Watford in all competitions, with five strikes and an assist.
- We are unbeaten in the 33 games in which Gabriel Jesus has scored, winning 32.
- All six of Watford’s home league wins this season came under former boss Nigel Pearson. They have lost only two of their nine previous home games against current top 10 sides (W3, D4).
- Troy Deeney can score in three consecutive league matches for the first time since February 2017. Four of Deeney’s last six home league goals have been penalties.
