Three Man City players who have picked themselves vs Newcastle after international exploits
Pep Guardiola has some tough decisions to make against Newcastle United after his Man City stars returned from international duty.
Thomas Tuchel called up Phil Foden after a recent England snub, while the likes of Erling Haaland, Ruben Dias, Rayan Cherki, and Gianluigi Donnarumma were all with their respective nations during the break.
Scotland’s win over Denmark was one of the main highlights, but Haaland was key as Norway qualified for the 2026 World Cup, joining several of his teammates at the tournament next year.
Guardiola is never going to drop his star striker unless he has to, so Football Insider has looked at three players who deserve to start against the Magpies, joining Haaland on Saturday, 22 November.
Nico O’Reilly
Nico O’Reilly‘s rise to fame at the Etihad Stadium has been incredible, and he absolutely deserves everything that comes to him, especially as he only continues to improve.
After silencing Mohamed Salah during Man City’s 3-0 win over Liverpool, the 20-year-old was handed his England debut against Serbia, before starting again against Albania.
Given that much of Newcastle’s attack will come through their pacey wingers, he could be extremely key to victory at St James’ Park this weekend.
Tijjani Reijnders
Much of Tijjani Reijnders‘ work goes unnoticed by many, and he has been benched in recent weeks, but the Dutchman has just proven to Guardiola why he deserves to feature against the Magpies.
As Ronald Koeman‘s side qualified for the World Cup, Reijnders notched a goal and an assist against Lithuania, pouncing on a ball inside the penalty area to open the scoring on Monday, 17 November.
While it might be difficult to slot him into the lineup, the midfielder has done more than enough to prove his worth.
Jeremy Doku
Doku has been on fire for Man City, and that was absolutely no different on international duty, as he terrorised defenders during Belgium’s clashes against Kazakhstan and Liechtenstein.
Concerns over his final product have often been raised since his £55.5million move to the Etihad, but with another three goal contributions to his name on international duty, that is clearly no longer a problem.
As well as making the left wing his own, Haaland would be disappointed not to see the 23-year-old starting alongside him, given that the Belgian creates an abundance of chances in the final third.