Match Preview: Man City Seek Back to Back Wins As Cityzens Welcome Premier League Newboys Bournemouth

• Defending Premier League champions Manchester City will look to secure their second successive win of the season when they face Bournemouth on Saturday
• The Cityzens have a spotless head-to-head meeting with the newly-promoted Bournemouth and will look to keep their enviable record against the Cherries intact
• Man City have scored at least 2 goals in 10 of their last 11 matches against Bournemouth in all competitions and Haaland will be licking his lips ahead of his home debut

Manchester City will seek to build on a perfect start to their title defence when the Cityzens cross swords with newly-promoted AFC Bournemouth at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday, August 13.

A brace from marquee signing Erling Haaland ensured Pep Guardiola's charges grabbed all three points at West Ham, avoiding a repeat of last season’s first-day defeat to Tottenham Hotspur.

The prolific Norwegian will be looking to get off the mark in his home debut as he plays in front of their home crowd for the first time this campaign.

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Meanwhile, Bournemouth, who have been tipped by many to be among the relegated clubs at the end of the season, will look to pull the chestnut out of the blazing fire as the Cherries face the reigning Premier League champions in a David vs Goliath encounter.

Scott Parker's side have already silenced the naysayers with a shock 2-0 win over Aston Villa on matchday one.

Speaking ahead of their second league game, Man City boss Guardiola highlighted the tactical approach from Bournemouth ahead of the fixture.

"They make the high press, squeeze really well, drop into five at the back, so narrow in the middle. Five at the back, close in the build-up to drag you out, link with the strikers. After they have good runners on the opposite side. They have good set pieces. We try to impose our game and avoid them."

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Pep's opposite number, Scott Parker admitted that the test against the reigning Premier League champions will be a whole different challenge for his players.

"It's difficult. It's very difficult. They're an unbelievable positional team. They change their positions slightly in every moment. However you set up against them, they quickly change their structure and the way they play. There's a challenge there, of course, there is.

"There's no denying that for us to go and get anything out of this game, we're going to need to be 11 players that are eight, nine out of ten. We'll need to ride our luck in certain moments, and we're going to have to give over probably one of the biggest, hardest performances we've ever given."

Team News:

Manchester City

Pep Guardiola is set to name an unchanged team from the side that beat West Ham United 2-0 last Sunday.

New signing Kalvin Phillips has been rocked with some niggles and could miss the game. Meanwhile, young forward Cole Palmer had a knock on his feet hence is a major doubt.

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Bernardo Silva is likely to start from the bench against Bournemouth amid links with a permanent move to Barcelona.

Defender, Aymeric Laporte remains out with a knee injury and will miss the game against Bournemouth.

Bournemouth

New defender Marcos Senesi is available for selection for this weekend’s trip to Manchester City.

Lewis Cook could start in midfield for the Cherries, with Marcus Tavenier set to retain his place in the starting lineup.

David Brooks remains out, but he is thankfully on the comeback trail after he was diagnosed with Stage 2 Hodgkin lymphoma last October.

Summer arrivals Joe Rothwell and Ryan Fredericks remain absent for the Cherries.

Players to watch

Erling Haaland's two-goal heroics against West Ham United last weekend helped Manchester City secure all three points from the London Stadium and will be looking to put a show on for their fans against Bournemouth.

Kevin DeBruyne will look to engineer yet another win for the Cityzens as the Belgian looks forward to continuing his fast-growing partnership with Haaland.

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Welsh forward Kieffer Moore, who notched a goal against Aston Villa, will be the go-to man for Bournemouth to capitalize on the new partnership in City's defence.

Colombian Jefferson Lerma will be a set-pieces threat to Man City as Bournemouth.