Porto-Manchester City: Doku and O’Reilly absent, Iliman Ndiaye included in the squad

Manchester City will have to start their Champions League campaign without Jérémy Doku and Nico O’Reilly this Tuesday evening at FC Porto’s stadium. Both players are not included in the squad of 22 members announced by the English club for the trip to Estádio do Dragão.

Their absence comes after a hectic weekend for Enzo Maresca’s squad. O’Reilly had to withdraw from the match against Coventry after feeling lower back pain during warm-up, while Doku remains unavailable. The London Standard lists both among the injured players ahead of City’s European debut.

The good news for the Skyblues concerns Iliman Ndiaye. The Senegalese, who left the Coventry game with a physical issue, is indeed on the official travel list. His presence paves the way for a first Champions League appearance with Manchester City, just days after his official arrival from Everton..

Matheus Nunes is also available. The Portuguese player stated on the eve of the match that he has recovered to “100%” after an ankle problem. He is part of the squad alongside Erling Haaland, Phil Foden, Enzo Fernández, Rayan Cherki, Antoine Semenyo, and Gianluigi Donnarumma.

The match takes place this Tuesday, 8 September, at Estádio do Dragão. Manchester City faces an opponent they have never lost to in the recent history of the competition, a context already detailed in our preview of Porto-Manchester City..

A squad of 22 players for Maresca

Enzo Maresca has called up three goalkeepers, several defensive mainstays, as well as a well-stocked attacking department despite Doku’s absence. Rico Lewis, Rúben Dias, Marc Guéhi, Joško Gvardiol, Rayan Aït-Nouri, Elliot Anderson, Mateo Kovačić, Ayyoub Bouaddi, and Abdukodir Khusanov are notably included in the group.

The Italian coach hinted in recent days that he plans to distribute playing time ahead of a busy schedule. The presence of Iliman Ndiaye, Ryan McAidoo, and Bouaddi gives him several options to rotate his team without sacrificing a competitive starting eleven.

Porto, for their part, return to the Champions League after two seasons away. The Dragons host a Manchester City side that has won its first three Premier League matches and will look to extend this momentum in their first European outing of the season.