Manchester City team news: Predicted XI vs Man Utd as Guardiola turns to four academy graduates

Seventy-six days after their FA Cup final defeat to Manchester United, Pep Guardiola's Manchester City return to Wembley for the Community Shield.

It is a repeat of that final, which City lost to Erik ten Hag's men – a victory that proved crucial in keeping the Dutchman in his job.

Guardiola will be looking for revenge this afternoon, as the traditional opening match pits the two Manchester giants against each other.

And ahead of today's Community Shield clash, Express Sport has predicted how the Premier League champions could line up under the Wembley arch.

Goalkeeper: Ederson

Unlike fellow South American Julian Alvarez, Ederson looks set to stay at City this summer despite outside interest.

Saudi clubs are said to be keen on signing the Brazil international, who missed this year's Copa America due to an injury sustained at the end of last season.

Stefan Ortega is City's regular goalkeeper in the cup, but Guardiola revealed on Friday that Ederson would be handed the gloves instead.

A ploy to keep him happy before this month's transfer deadline, perhaps?

Defenders: Gvardiol, Akanji, Dias, Lewis

One of City's most strained positions heading into the game, Guardiola was without most of his centre-back options throughout the pre-season tour of the United States.

As a result, £50million flop Kalvin Phillips has operated at the heart of defence, but with a trophy on the line, Guardiola will likely welcome Manuel Akanji and Ruben Dias back into the squad.

Players from both teams will get more game time, with Josko Gvardiol and Rico Lewis having been prominent throughout pre-season.

Midfielders: Kovacic, O'Reilly, McAtee

Without Rodri or Phil Foden, City's midfield will be significantly weaker, with the bulk of it made up of academy graduates.

Nico O'Reilly has been the surprise of City's pre-season tour, with Guardiola admitting the 19-year-old is capable of playing first-team minutes this season.

The confidence was also shared by James McAtee, who is expected to be deployed as a number 10, with Kevin De Bruyne likely to watch from the bench.

The cementing role of the trio of young midfielders will be provided by Mateo Kovacic, who, like his compatriot Gvardiol, returned to City training midway through his pre-season tour.

Attack: Grealish, Haaland, Bobb

That's perhaps the only certainty for today's starting XI: Jack Grealish, Erling Haaland and Oscar Bobb have all racked up plenty of minutes in the four pre-season games.

While Haaland and Grealish both found the net, it was Bobb who stole the show in the United States, with the young Norwegian scoring five goals in four warm-up games.

Keep an eye on City's substitutes' bench though, with new signing Savinho set to make his capital debut this afternoon.