Riyad Mahrez, Rico Lewis, and Kalvin Phillips all to start – Predicted XI: Manchester City vs Chelsea (Premier League)

Manchester City will look to lift their fifth Premier League title in the last six years in match-winning fashion on Sunday afternoon, with Chelsea the opponents.

Pep Guardiola and his players come into the contest high on life following the historic night against Real Madrid in midweek, as City reached their second ever Champions League final with a 4-0 win over the La Liga giants.

Two goals from Bernardo Silva, as well as strikes from Manuel Akanji and Julian Alvarez, capped off a perfect performance from the City squad, as they now look to defeat Inter in an Istanbul final to lift their first ever Champions League crown next month.

That contest was capped off in a fantastic week by Arsenal’s defeat to Nottingham Forest on Saturday evening, confirming Manchester City’s status as the Premier League champions for the 2022/23 season.

Ahead of this weekend’s crowning afternoon at the Etihad Stadium, here is how we predict Pep Guardiola will line-up his Manchester City squad for the final home match of the season!

Predicted XI

With it not being a certainty that Ederson will start between the sticks this weekend, given the fact that the league crown is now wrapped up, we believe Stefan Ortega could be granted his second Premier League start of the season.

At right-back, but often inverting into defensive midfield, Rico Lewis could earn the chance to perform against the squad that he excelled against at Stamford Bridge in the reverse fixture earlier this season.

We anticipate that Manuel Akanji and Ruben Dias will make up the central defensive pairing, while Aymeric Laporte could be utilised at left-back or on the left side of a back-three against Frank Lampard’s team.

With there being an ever-growing need to grant defensive midfield Rodri the rest he requires at present, and now of course with the Premier League title in the bag, we predict Kalvin Phillips to start at the base of City’s midfield trio.

In front of the England international, we believe Kevin De Bruyne to start once again despite some personal problems in the last few weeks, while he could accompany the very fluid Julian Alvarez.

In a total rotation of his wide-pairing, we anticipate that Pep Guardiola could provide starting XI places to both Riyad Mahrez and Phil Foden – both of whom have shone at different stages of the campaign.

Erling Haaland could start up top once more in this one.

Starting XI: Ortega; Lewis, Akanji, Dias, Laporte; Phillips, De Bruyne, Alvarez; Mahrez, Haaland, Foden.

Substitutes: Ederson, Walker, Stones, Gomez, Rodri, Gundogan, Bernardo, Grealish, Palmer.