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12:30
The hosts get the ball rolling … But only after everyone kneels down Black lives matter. There is no place for racism. This is the first time the City has appointed a side without changes in 172 games. October 2017, half a world away.
12:28
No news from David Moyes, but it doesn’t matter, because here come the teams! Pretty bubbles fill the air as West Ham head to the London Stadium. They are in their famous claret and blue. City follows them, and they appear in second-choice black. We’re leaving in a couple of minutes!
12:15
Pep Guardiola talks to BT Sport. “We decided to continue with the same guys to get up to speed as fast as possible. We were better in the second half [against Porto] but in some games you need time. We cannot deny the great team we play. West Ham are in a good moment when it comes to confidence, which is everything in football. Or almost everything! They also have talented players, always. The teams that play in Europe and international competition … with the Covid situation, you have to adapt, it is what it is.
11:37
West Ham rewards players who came back from three down at Spurs by naming the same XI. There is still no Said Benrahma; not fully fit. But Sebastien Haller is on the bench.
Manchester City has not changed either. They choose the same XI that beat Porto 3-1. However, there is some great news on the bench, and it is good: Kevin De Bruyne is back.
11:32
The teams
West Ham United: Fabianski, Coufal, Balbuena, Ogbonna, Cresswell, Masuaku, Bowen, Soucek, Rice, Fornals, Antonio.
Subs: Yarmolenko, Lanzini, Noble, Haller, Diop, Fredericks, Randolph.
City of Manchester: Ederson, Walker, Dias, García, Joao Cancelo, Bernardo Silva, Rodri, Gundogan, Mahrez, Agüero, Sterling.
Subs: Stones, Zinchenko, Steffen, De Bruyne, Torres, Foden, Palmer.
Referee: Anthony Taylor (Cheshire).
11:20
Preamble
If recent history is any guide, this will only end one way. Since drawing 2-2 with Manchester City in January 2016, West Ham United have faced the Citizens nine times. They have lost every game, an unfortunate sequence that has them on the wrong side of an aggregate score of 30-4.
But losing races are there to be broken, and West Ham has reason to believe this could be their day. They’ve had some impressive performances so far this season: a 3-0 win at Leicester, a 4-0 loss to Wolves and that absurd three-goal comeback at Spurs last weekend. They are just as excited about life as they have been for quite some time.
City, by contrast, have not been at their best so far this season. They have been beaten by Leicester, at the hands of Leeds, and they weren’t particularly impressive in beating Arsenal last weekend. They will also miss their star man Kevin De Bruyne and the influential Fernandinho. However, they moved smoothly through the gears in the second half against Porto the other night, suggesting the old confidence is making a comeback. Momentum is building, a return to top form surely imminent. There is no better time to reconnect with your bunnies.
It’s perfectly balanced, in other words … and it’s on! The start is at 12.30 pm.
