Preview: Manchester City vs. Brentford – team news, lineups, prediction, live stream

The Citizens followed up their last-gasp 2-1 Premier League victory with 10 men against Fulham last weekend, with a 2-0 success against Chelsea in the EFL Cup third round, courtesy of second-half strikes from Riyad Mahrez and Julian Alvarez.

Pep Guardiola’s side, who will discover their fourth-round opponents in Thursday’s draw, will now turn their attention back to the Premier League with a fourth successive home match this weekend, which is also their final fixture before a six-week break for the World Cup.

Man City have won seven of their last eight top-flight matches, but they still sit two points behind league leaders Arsenal; the Citizens can only finish the weekend at the summit if they beat Brentford and hope that the Gunners drop points away at Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday evening.

Brentford have slipped down to 11th place in the Premier League standings with only three wins on the board after 14 matches, and hopes of heading into the World Cup break on a high will be a tall order against the reigning top-flight champions.

The Bees, who had no more than 24% possession in either of their two encounters with Man City last season, will be seeking to claim their first away victory against the Citizens since a 2-0 triumph on Christmas Day back in 1937.

Man City striker Erling Braut Haaland, who was an unused substitute in midweek, could return to the starting lineup, with Guardiola expected to make several changes to the side that beat Chelsea.

Kevin De Bruyne, Bernardo Silva and Phil Foden could also be handed starts, with Cole Palmer, Mahrez and Jack Grealish potentially dropping to the substitutes’ bench as a result.

Kalvin Phillips came off the bench in the second half against Chelsea to make his first City appearance in eight weeks after recovering from shoulder surgery, and the midfielder will be hoping to get more minutes under his belt on Saturday.

Kyle Walker, meanwhile, remains out as he continues to recover from groin surgery.

Frank may decide to use a back five to counteract the threat of Man City, with Ben Mee expected to return at centre-back alongside Ethan Pinnock and Mathias Jorgensen, while Mads Roerslev and Rico Henry are set to operate as wing-backs.

Mathias Jensen, Christian Norgaard and Josh Dasilva could make up a three-man midfield, while Bryan Mbeumo – who will represent Cameroon at the World Cup – is set to partner Toney in attack.