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After starting off the season with a 2-0 win against Brighton, Manchester City will look to earn another three points on Monday night against Everton in their home debut at the Etihad Stadium.
Pep Guardiola is hoping to avenge last season’s 4-0 loss to the Toffees at Goodison Park, his worst defeat throughout his entire managerial career.
Everton may have caused City a lot problems in the past, but the squad they’ll have on Monday is looking a lot different than it did in January. The Toffees’ star man last year, Romelu Lukaku, left the club to join Manchester United, but they did sign Academy hero Wayne Rooney to bolster the attack.
After beating Stoke City 1-0 at home last weekend, Ronald Koeman’s men are ready to put up another fight against City on Monday night. Here’s a few players to look out for in the match:
Jordan Pickford
After he missed out on Joe Hart who went to West Ham United, Koeman decided to sign Jordan Pickford after his impressive season with relegated Sunderland. Pickford finished with 135 saves last season, just six short of league leader Tom Heaton.
The 23-year-old looks to be one of the best signings of the summer window, and he has room to improve even more at Everton. However, Pickford will have a tough time trying to keep a clean sheet against City’s powerful attack.
Kyle Walker
After starting and impressing as a wing-back in City’s win against Brighton last week, it will be interesting to see what position Walker will play on Monday night. However, there is no doubt that he should be a crucial part to City’s system.
City struggled last season against Everton because the full-backs had trouble defending the Toffees’ strong wing play, which caused the central defenders many problems and led to ugly mistakes at the back. Walker will try to sure up the Blues’ defense this time around while pushing City forward in the attack.
Gylfi Sigurdsson
After his magnificent campaign with Swansea City last season, Everton made Sigurdsson the club’s most expensive player in history after securing his transfer earlier in the week. The news came after the club realized that fellow midfielder Ross Barkley could miss a long time with a hamstring injury.
Iceland’s star midfielder saved the Swans from relegation last season with 9 goals and 13 assists, and Ronald Koeman will hope to see the same production from him this season. It’s unclear whether or not Sigurdsson will make his debut against City, but if he does, look out.
Gabriel Jesus
After going scoreless with two big chances missed last week against Brighton, Gabriel Jesus will look to rebound with a stellar performance in City’s home opener.
The Brazilian striker will have to meet higher expectations this year, with the hype surrounding his talent exponentially growing. However, Jesus has as much potential as anyone in the Premier League, and it wouldn’t be a surprise to see him get on the scoresheet on Monday night.