Manchester City travel to Wolves in the early Sunday kick-off in the Premier League. Pep Guardiola’s side will hope to keep pace in the title race, with Liverpool topping the table before the international break.
Gary O’Neill’s team will be desperate for a result to move away from their place at the bottom of the table, after just one point from seven games so far. And a 2-1 win last season against the champions provides hope of another upset here.
Guardiola admitted “part of me is leaving” after news that sporting director Txiki Begiristain will depart the club after the current campaign, while also playing down reports of negotiations with the FA over the England job before Thomas Tuchel was appointed.
The champions are sweating on the fitness of Kevin De Bruyne and could go top before Liverpool face Chelsea in the late kick-off.
Follow live updates from the Premier League clash below as Wolves host Man City:
Team news
A reminder of the early team news for today. The line-ups should be announced in around five minutes…
Wolves forward Hwang Hee-chan misses out after injuring his ankle playing for South Korea joining Enso Gonzalez, Sasa Kalajdzic, Yerson Mosquera and Boubacar Traore on the sidelines.
Meanwhile, Manchester City are definitely without Kevin De Bruyne, Rodri and Oscar Bobb with the latter two long-term absentees.
Nathan Ake remains a doubt.
Chris Wilson20 October 2024 12:40
Pep Guardiola says he would advise on Man City successor when he eventually leaves the club
Pep Guardiola would be prepared to advise Manchester City when the club begin their search for his successor. City’s serial-winning manager is in the final year of his contract and speculation over his future is rife.
The Catalan insists he is yet to make a decision on whether or not he will extend his stay into a 10th season at the Etihad Stadium.
Yet when the time comes to depart, he would be willing to offer the club his thoughts on the person to take over, although he would not expect to help.
Mike Jones20 October 2024 12:35
Head-to-head
The two sides have met a total of 130 times, with the first meeting dating back to 1899.
Overall, City have won 55, Wolves have won 50, and 25 matches have ended as draws.
Last season, Wolves won 2-1 at the Molineux before suffering a 5-1 defeat at the Etihad in early May.
Chris Wilson20 October 2024 12:30
Arsenal faced ‘impossible task’ down to 10 men at Bournemouth, claims Mikel Arteta
It’s still early days in the Premier League, but here’s the report on a potentially pivotal evening on the south coast yesterday…
The defender was dismissed after 30 minutes following a VAR review for hauling down striker Evanilson near the halfway line and denying him a clear run on goal.
It set the stage for a first league loss this season for Arteta’s side who conceded a second-half rocket to Ryan Christie before Justin Kluivert’s late penalty, though the story could have been different had Gabriel Martinelli not fired a golden chance straight at goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga moments before the Scot’s opener.
Chris Wilson20 October 2024 12:25
Pep Guardiola reacts to Thomas Tuchel appointment but dodges questions over England talks
Pep Guardiola refused to say whether he was approached over the England job before the Football Association appointed Thomas Tuchel, as he wished the German “the very best” in charge of the national team.
However, talks between the FA and Tuchel accelerated earlier this month after initial contact was made in August and the German will take charge in January with interim Lee Carsley overseeing next month’s camp.
FA chief executive Mark Bullingham revealed at Tuchel’s unveiling that “approximately 10 candidates” were interviewed, including some from England, although Newcastle boss Eddie Howe said he was not contacted.
Chris Wilson20 October 2024 12:20
Head to head record favours City
Manchester City have won seven of the last eight league meetings, scoring a total of 25 goals in those games. Their only defeat during that period was by 2-1 at Molineux last season.
Mike Jones20 October 2024 12:15
Can Wolves beat Man City again?
Wolves are aiming to win consecutive home league games against Manchester City for the first time since a run of three between 1982 and 1996.
City have dropped points in three of their six Premier League visits to Molineux.
Mike Jones20 October 2024 12:10
Wolves vs Man City team news: Kevin De Bruyne injury latest, hosts face fitness crisis
And while there were hopes that he may be fit to feature fully as the champions travel to Molineux for a meeting with Wolves, Guardiola on match eve provided an unencouraging update on the fitness of the Belgian and teammate Nathan Ake.
Mike Jones20 October 2024 12:05
Wolves vs Man City early team news
Wolves forward Hwang Hee-chan misses out after injuring his ankle playing for South Korea joining Enso Gonzalez, Sasa Kalajdzic, Yerson Mosquera and Boubacar Traore on the sidelines.
Meanwhile, Manchester City are definitely without Kevin De Bruyne, Rodri and Oscar Bobb with the latter two long-term absentees.
Nathan Ake remains a doubt.
Mike Jones20 October 2024 12:00
Good afternoon!
Welcome to The Independent’s coverage of today’s Premier League action as Manchester City travel to the midlands to face Wolves in Sunday’s early kick off.
The champions were given a boost yesterday as title rivals Arsenal slipped up with a 2-0 loss to Bournemouth after William Saliba was sent off for denying a goal-scoring opportunity when he dragged down forward Evanlison.
If City triumph at Molineux today they will move to the top of the table ahead of Liverpool’s crucial clash with Chelsea. It’s an equally important encounter for Wolves.
They’re struggling in the table, sitting 19th having collected just one point from their first seven matches. Manager Gary O’Neil is under pressure but taking points off the reigning champions will be a big success.
We’ll have all the team news, line-ups and latest updates throughout the afternoon so stick with us as we build up to kick off at 2pm.
Mike Jones20 October 2024 10:04