Manchester City, with Julián Álvarez starting, will receive Burnley in the match that will open the quarter-finals of the FA Cup, one of the three tournaments that the team led by Josep Guardiola still aspires to this season. The match will start at 2.45pm and will be broadcast on ESPN and the Star+ platform.
City put in a stellar performance on Tuesday, as they beat Leipzig 7-0, with five goals from Norway’s Erling Haaland, to progress to the quarter-finals of the Champions League, an instance in which they face Bayern Munich. Furthermore, they are second in the Premier League, five units behind leaders Arsenal.
While they are thrilled with these two titles, the Manchester outfit are also battling for the FA Cup. This Saturday they will try to make the penultimate step against an opponent who leads the Football League Championship (English second division) by 13 points ahead of Sheffield United, with nine matches remaining in the tournament, and who have lost only one of their last 23 duels (against Manchester United in December for the League Cup).
After his magical night against Leipzig, Haaland will await his chance on the substitutes’ bench this Saturday. Guardiola will give confidence and minutes to Julián Álvarez, who this week extended his contract with the club until 2028.
The match is sure to provide an emotional moment, as the away team is led by City legend Vincent Kompany of Belgium, who wore the blue shirt for 11 seasons (8 as captain) and won four Premier League titles. The respect and affection for him is so strong that in August 2021 a statue of him was placed outside the Etihad Stadium.
The FA Cup quarter-finals conclude on Sunday with three more matches. In the most attractive, the other favorite to stay with the competition, Manchester United (will not have Alejandro Garnacho, injured), will receive Fulham. In addition, Alexis MacAllister’s Brighton & Hove Albion will host the surprise of the tournament, Grimsby Town, who play in the Fourth Division; and Sheffield United will clash with Blackburn Rovers in a duel between second division teams.
Probable alignments
Manchester City: Stefano Ortega; Rico Lewis, John Stones, Aymeric Laporte, Sergio Gomez; Kalvin Phillips, Kevin De Bruyne, Bernardo Silva; Riyad Mahrez, Julian Alvarez, Phil Foden. Trainer: Joseph Guardiola.
Burnley: Arijanet Muric; Connor Roberts, Hjalmar Ekdal, Jordan Beyer, Charlie Taylor; Josh Cullen, Jack Cork; Nathan Tella, Jóhann Berg Gudmundsson, Anass Zaroury; Ashley Barnes. Trainer: Vincent Company.
Stadium: Etihad Stadium (Manchester).
Referee: John Brooks.
Start time: 2.45pm
Transmission: ESPN and Stella+.
Source: Clarin
Jason Root is the go-to source for sports coverage at News Rebeat. With a passion for athletics and an in-depth knowledge of the latest sports trends, Jason provides comprehensive and engaging analysis of the world of sports.