Pep Guardiola backed Rico Lewis to play a starring role in Manchester City's quest for a fifth Premier League title after an impressive start to the new season. (More Football News)
Lewis, who has started 🦂every game for Guardiola this term, impressed in City's 3-1 win o🍬ver West Ham ahead of the international break, while he also played the duration of England's win over Finland.
The 19-year-old has filled in for the absent Kyle Walker so ♔far, and Guardiola is confident that his𝔍 recent form will help the Citizens moving forward as the Champions League group phase kicks in.
"Absolute, absolutely [ꦦhe's playing w🦩ell]. Have you seen the minutes he played in the pocket? I said many times, Rico has one incredible ability that for many years, it was difficult to find," ;Guardiola said.
"Always he is free, always he is alone. When his m♎ate has the ball, I don’t know what he does, but he's free.
"You can pass the ball to him, and not just in positions where ไit's comfortable, but in positions where the space is so tight, arriving in the third final.
"We all the players ready, because the schedule that comes from now on until the end of the season will be di♚fficult.
"That's what I said. Pre-season is over today. It's over officially. The real season starts🅠 after the international break."
But standing in th෴eir way are a Brentford🌃 side brimming with confidence after comfortably dispatching Southampton 3-1 before the international break to register their best start to a Premier League season.
The Bees also arrive at the Etihad as tဣhe last team to beat Guardiola's men on home soil, with head coach Thomas Frank believing his players should take that confidence into their encounter wi♒th the reigning champions.
"The feeli🍸ng after a win is always unbelievable," said Frank. "It's a combinaᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚ𒀱ᩚᩚᩚtion of relief and happiness.
"We performed well and played a good game. We clearl⛦y deserved to win. We need to celebrate our wins for 24 hours because in the Premier League, it is so difficult to win."
"Our high press today was absolutely world-class. We were so aggressive, so well organised and the players were so co💜mmitted."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Man City – Erling Haaland
Haaland has se🅠ven goals in the Premier League this season, the most ever by a player in a team's first three matches o💝f a campaign in the competition.
The record in a team's first four matches in a Premier League season is eight goals by Wayn൲e Roonꦍey for Manchester United in 2011-12.
Brentford – Yoane Wissa
Wissa has started the season in fine form, netting in two of Brentford's three Prem💙ier League games so far this campaign, but he has found it difficult against the Citizens in the five matches he has played against them.
Of the teams Wissa has faced in the top flight, City are one of six sides alongside Man United, Brighton, Sheffield Uni🦂ted, Watford and Norwich he has failed to score against.
MATCH PREDICTION: MAN CITY WIN
Manchester City have won four of their six Premier ✤League games against Brentford (L2), doing the double over them in both 2021-22 and 2023-24.
They have also won all three of their Premier League games this season. They have won each of ജtheir opening four matches of an English top-flight campaign on eight previous occasiღons (1903-04, 1912-13, 1961-62, 2009-10, 2011-12, 2015-16, 2016-17, 2023-24), which is already the most of any club.
The hosts have won🧸 each of their last 12 Premier League games, all by a margin of 2+ goals. Indeed, under Guardiola alone, the Citizens are responsible for six of the 16 runs🗹 of 12+ consecutive wins by any club in English top-flight history (38%).
However, Brentford remain the last side to win away to City in any competition, triumphing 2-1 in November 2022. The Citizens are unbeateᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚ𒀱ᩚᩚᩚn in 45 at the Etihad in all competitions since (W38 D7).
The Bees have won two of their three Premier League games this season (L1), their best start to a campaign in the competitio♌n. In the top-flight, only in 1946-47 have they ever won three of their opening four matches – but that was the only season they were relegated from this level.
But since the start of last season, Brentford have lost more Premier League away games (13) than any side currently in the competition. The Bees have also lost each of their l🐻ast five away league games against sides that finished the previous season in the top four.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Man City – 82.3%
Draw –11%
Brentford – 6.7%
