Manchester City welcome Liverpool to the Etihad Stadium for a Carabao Cup clash on Thursday, with Pep Guardiola's side making their return to action after the break in the domestic campaign.
The Blues, who last beat the Merseyside club in February 2021, suffered a surprise defeat to Brentford in their final outing before the World Cup in Qatar. Bees frontman Ivan Toney scored a late winner for the London outfit, but City still went into the mid-season break second in the Premier League table.
Guardiola's side defeated Girona in a friendly match at the Academy Stadium at the weekend, with Erling Haaland and Kevin De Bruyne both on target for the home side. The Blues boss was able to field a strong side for the game, with several of his players having exited the World Cup ahead of the semi-finals and final.
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City forward Julian Alvarez will return to Manchester with a World Cup winners medal, with Argentina having defeated France on penalties in the final on Sunday. However, the 22-year-old will not feature against Liverpool in the upcoming Carabao Cup clash.
What TV channel is Man City vs Liverpool on?
The match, which kicks-off at 8pm, will be shown live on Sky Sports Main Event in the UK, with build-up starting from 7pm. The programme is scheduled to finish at 11pm.
As always, the Manchester Evening News will bring you updates during our live matchday blog.
What is the early Man City vs Liverpool team news?
While Guardiola will have a number of first-team players available, including Haaland and De Bruyne, and with more set to return in the coming days, the Spaniard suggested that he does not know what team he will be able to put out against Liverpool.
John Stones was a concern for Blues supporters when he limped off in England's quarter-final defeat to France in Al Khor, but the injury was not serious and the centre-back should be in contention for the hectic festive fixture schedule.
Haaland had spent some time during the training week in Abu Dhabi focusing on fitness work away from the rest of the 19-man training squad, but the Norwegian frontman recently claimed that he was raring to go for City's return to action.
Meanwhile, Liverpool are set to name a strong starting line-up for the Carabao Cup clash against the Blues, with Mohamed Salah, Thiago, Andy Robertson and several other first-team players not featuring at the World Cup in Qatar.
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