FULL TIME
4-1
MATCH PREVIEW & MORE INFO
Man City: possible starting lineup: Ederson; Lewis, Akanji, Dias, Gvardiol; Kovacic, De Bruyne; Bernardo, Foden, Doku, Haaland
Ipswich : possible starting lineup: Walton; Tuanzebe, Woolfenden, Greaves, Davis; Morsy, Luongo; Johnson, Chaplin, Hutchinson; Delap
Match Preview
Manchester City will return to the Etihad Stadium with high expectations as they take on newly-promoted Ipswich Town in their first home match of the new Premier League season on Saturday. The two sides last met in January 2002 in the FA Cup, where City, then a second-tier team, secured a 4-1 victory over Ipswich, who were in the top flight at the time.
City began their season strongly, following up their Community Shield win over Manchester United with a 2-0 victory over Chelsea, with Erling Haaland scoring early on his 100th appearance for the club and Mateo Kovacic adding a second late on. The win marked City's 10th consecutive Premier League game won by two or more goals, a new record in the competition's history.
Pep Guardiola's men will be confident heading into this fixture, especially given their impressive home form. They extended their unbeaten home run in the Premier League to 30 matches with a win over West Ham United on the final day of last season, which also secured their fourth consecutive Premier League title.
Ipswich, meanwhile, are back in the Premier League for the first time in 22 years, having secured back-to-back promotions under head coach Kieran McKenna. They started their campaign with a 2-0 home defeat to Liverpool, despite an encouraging first-half performance. McKenna praised his team's effort but emphasized the need to maintain their performance levels to compete in the top flight.
However, Ipswich's task doesn't get any easier as they prepare for their first-ever visit to the Etihad Stadium. Their away record against reigning top-flight champions is not encouraging, as they have failed to win or score in their last seven such encounters. Still, they can draw some confidence from their last two away victories against City at Maine Road in 2000.
City could be without key midfielder Rodri, who missed the Chelsea match and has been training separately. Oscar Bobb is also out for several months due to a fractured leg. However, Savinho, who picked up a minor knee issue against Chelsea, has trained and may be available. New signing Ilkay Gundogan could also be in contention if his international clearance comes through in time.
For Ipswich, several players are sidelined with injuries, including Wes Burns, Nathan Broadhead, George Hirst, and Harry Clarke. Kalvin Phillips, on loan from City, is ineligible to face his parent club, but Jens Cajuste, another recent loan signing, may make his debut. Ipswich also hopes to secure Armando Broja on loan from Chelsea before the match, but even if they do, Liam Delap, recently sold by City, could start up front.