Crystal Palace vs Manchester City Lineup August 2026
Crystal Palace vs Manchester City Lineup August 2026 – Two new coaches who are still searching for the best formula for their respective teams will face each other when Crystal Palace host Manchester City in their first home Premier League match of the 2026/2027 season.
The match is scheduled to take place at Selhurst Park on Friday, August 28, 2026, at 20:00 local time.
The Eagles will hope to recover after suffering defeat in their opening match, while The Citizens will look to maintain their perfect start to the season by securing another victory.
Before the match begins, let us take a look at Mansion Sports' predicted Crystal Palace vs Manchester City lineup for August 2026 below.
Both Teams' Condition Ahead of the Match
Crystal Palace
Palace's last two seasons ended in historic fashion under former coach Oliver Glasner. He guided the team to the FA Cup and Conference League titles, leaving a high standard for current head coach Pierre Sage to meet.
Although it would be unfair to immediately expect the former Lens coach to replicate his predecessor's level of success, supporters will certainly question their prospects this week, considering that the team must face one of the most dominant forces in modern English football.
That feeling has been strengthened by Sage's side beginning the season with a 2-0 defeat to Everton.
In that match, they conceded on either side of half-time through goals from Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Thierno Barry.
Nevertheless, Palace may feel unfortunate to have suffered defeat. They recorded 1.96 expected goals compared with 1.12 for The Toffees, and better finishing should have been enough to turn the four big chances they missed into three points.
If The Eagles want to avoid defeat on Friday, they must be more clinical when taking their chances.
This is because they have lost six of their last 10 meetings with City and have secured only one victory during that period, which was the Londoners' famous 1-0 victory in the 2025 FA Cup final.
Manchester City
Meanwhile, Enzo Maresca's Manchester City are taking their first steps into the post-Pep Guardiola era.
Although their performance in the opening match was far from perfect, they managed to secure highly important points.
The Citizens bounced back from a 3-0 defeat to Arsenal in the Community Shield by defeating Bournemouth 2-1 last Sunday.
Maresca's side trailed by one goal at half-time against The Cherries, but Marc Guehi's equaliser in the 84th minute and Josko Gvardiol's stoppage-time winner turned the match around.
The Sky Blues will certainly hope to secure a more comfortable victory on Friday. However, supporters are also aware that the team have yet to record a single clean sheet since coming under their new coach.
The situation is made more difficult by the fact that City secured only two victories in their last five away league matches last season.
With the squad currently undergoing a transitional period, it remains to be seen how they will perform in away matches during the 2026-27 season.
Crystal Palace vs Manchester City Lineup August 2026
Crystal Palace (3-4-2-1)
Regarding the condition of the Crystal Palace squad, Palace will be without Ismaila Sarr, who has reportedly become a target for Liverpool.
He is still undergoing individual training as he recovers from a groin injury. Therefore, Dwight McNeil and Eddie Nketiah are likely to start behind striker Jean-Philippe Mateta.
In defence, centre-back Chadi Riad will be absent due to a knee injury. However, Jaydee Canvot, Chris Richards, and Takehiro Tomiyasu are expected to be available to form Sage's defensive trio.
Manchester City (4-2-3-1)
As for Manchester City, they will be without left winger Jeremy Doku, who is still working his way back into the squad after suffering a calf problem.
In his absence, Phil Foden, Nico O'Reilly, and Antoine Semenyo are expected to form the attacking trio, supported by their main centre-forward Erling Haaland.
Elsewhere, midfielder Elliot Anderson remains doubtful as he continues to recover from a thigh problem.
If he is unavailable, Mateo Kovacic could start alongside Marc Guehi in Maresca's central midfield partnership.
With both teams in these conditions, this match has the potential to be an intriguing test for two coaches who are beginning new eras with their respective clubs.
Crystal Palace will look to use the support of the Selhurst Park crowd to recover, while Manchester City will seek to prove that they can remain competitive under new leadership.