Manchester City v Tottenham: Premier League – live

No centre-backs again for Ange, with Ben Davies and Emerson Royal the pair, and an adventurous midfield in Lo Celso and Bissouma. Bryan Gil is in the attacking trio, too. He’s going for it, as promised.

As for Manchester City, three changes from their latest meeting with RB Leipzig. Ederson, Jeremy Doku and Julian Alvarez replace Stefan Ortega, Rico Lewis and Jack Grealish. That’s a very strong team, in which in terms of the game last week with Liverpool, the one you probably forgot already, Nathan Ake out and Josko Gvardiol is the only alteration. Still, City weren’t great in that game so maybe there is hope for Spurs.

Manchester City: Ederson, Walker, Gvardiol, Dias, Akanji, Rodri, Silva, Foden, Doku, Alvarez, Haaland. Subs: Ortega, Phillips, Stones, Ake, Kovacic, Grealish, Gomez, Bobb, Lewis.

Tottenham: Vicario, Udogie, Porro, Royal, Davies, Bissouma, Lo Celso, Johnson, Kulusevski, Gil, Son. Subs: Forster, Austin, Skipp, Hojbjerg, Richarlison, Veliz, Santiago, Donley, Dorrington.

Ange’s latest “look, mate”. By David Hytner.

I think there’s a reason I’m sitting here and the reason is the end game is not to beat City. I’m not trying to set up a team to beat City, I’m trying to set up a team to be successful. If that was enough [beating City], I wouldn’t be sitting here. It would be somebody else.

It’s a legitimate question: ‘Why wouldn’t you do it if you know it’s going to be successful?’ But I’d be surprised if people would expect me to go down that route, knowing who I am as a manager.

When Pep first said “wow, guys” about Ange. By Jonathan Liew.

“So demanding,” wheezed Guardiola. “An incredible dynamic.” Raheem Sterling went further, praising Yokohama as “probably one of the best teams I’ve seen playing out from the back”.

Manchester City

Doubtful None

Injured Nunes (fitness, unknown), De Bruyne (hamstring, Jan)

Suspended None

Tottenham

Doubtful None

Injured Richarlison (groin 10 Dec), Sarr (hamstring, 15 Dec), Sessegnon (hamstring, 15 Dec), Solomon (knee, Jan), Van de Ven (hamstring, Jan), Maddison (foot, Jan), Phillips (ankle, Jan), Bentancur (ankle, Feb), Perisic (knee, Jun)

Suspended Romero (third of three)

All the dreams he held so close, seemed to all go up in smoke, where will he lead them from here? Ange Postecoglou, the darling of early season, has had a rough trot of late. The injuries are piling up, and now he faces the toughest test of all in the English game, a Manchester City team from which only Kevin De Bruyne is missing. Not only that, but Pep Guardiola has been praising Tottenham’s style of football in a manner that suggests he sees Spurs playing the right way: as in an open style in which his war machine will then crush and walk all over. Still, Ange ain’t changing his ways for nobody so that means he will go hell for leather at the Etihad. It’s a crazy plan and it’s probably not going to work but we don’t know that, so that’s why we’re here.

The kick-off is at 4.30pm UK time. Join me.