team news
City make nine changes from the 2-0 win over Fulham.
Only Ilkay Gundogan and Riyad Mahrez remain from the starting XI against the Cottagers as Pep Guardiola makes good on his promise to rotate and rest tired legs.
Nathan Ake and Zack Steffen get rare starts while Sergio Aguero also makes a welcome return on the bench after several weeks out with a muscle injury.
City: Steffen, Walker, Aké, Laporte, Garcia, Fernandinho (c), Gündogan, Bernardo, Torres, Foden, Mahrez
Substitutes: Carson, Stones, Sterling, Jesus, Agüero, De Bruyne, Mendy, Cancelo, Nmecha, Doyle, Palmer, Bernabe
digital matchday programme
Read Pep’s pre-match notes, Buzzer’s column and discover the 10 connections between City and Marseille in our free digital matchday programme,
When and where
Manchester City host Marseille in our final Champions League Group C match on Wednesday 9 December on the Etihad Stadium, with the game getting underway at 20:00 (UK).
Viewers in the UK can watch the match live on BT Sport, and you can also follow all of the action with minute by minute text updates and audio commentary in our Matchday Centre, and on Twitter: @ManCity.
If you prefer a more City-centric look at the match, then you can watch our We’re Not Really Here show in our Matchday Centre, which provides coverage before kick-off, at half-time and after the game.
A full-match replay of the game will also be available to watch on CITY+ from midnight.
For more information on how you can tune in, wherever you are in the world, check out our global TV listings at the end of this preview.
Team news
Pep Guardiola has a fully fit squad to select from - and Sergio Aguero could make the bench after training this week without feeling a reaction to his recent knee problems.
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Form Guide
Pep Guardiola’s men are already assured of top spot in Champions League Group C after last week’s goalless draw with Porto, and remain unbeaten in Europe so far this season.
In all competitions, we go into the game in fine form, with our 2-0 victory over Fulham meaning we have kept four consecutive clean sheets.
Marseille cannot qualify for the Last 16, but need to better Olympiakos’ result against Porto in order to finish third and qualify for the Europa League.
With this in mind, plus a five game winning streak to boast in their domestic league, a result on Wednesday night against the French side is far form a foregone conclusion.
Match officials
Referee: Halil Umut Meler (TUR)
Assistant referees: Mustafa Eyisoy (TUR), Cevdet Komurcuoglu (TUR)
Video Assistant Referee: Sascha Stegemann (GER)
Fourth official: Arda Kardeşler (TUR)
Assistant Video Assistant Referee: Ali Palabıyık (TUR)
UEFA Delegate: Paul Daniel Zaharia (ROU)
UEFA Referee observer: Vítor Melo Pereira (POR)
Last meeting
Manchester City grabbed a deserved first ever win on French soil as they cruised past Marseille 3-0 back in October.
Kevin De Bruyne capitalised on a loose pass from Valentin Rongier just before the 20-minute mark before feeding Ferran Torres for a simple finish to open the scoring.
Ilkay Gündoğan then put some daylight between the sides with a close-range finish in the 76th minute.
And De Bruyne was once again instrumental five minutes later, threading an inch-perfect pass through to Sterling for the England winger to round off a resounding win from close-range.
PEP PREVIEW
“Everyone is fit. Tomorrow we will decide [on the team],” Guardiola said.
“Tomorrow we will see his reaction to his body, not just his knee.
“But the important thing is in the last three, four days he was part of the group and the niggles he had in the recent past disappeared.
“He will be back [playing regularly] when he can train regularly over weeks and weeks and has minutes, minutes, minutes.
“We know Sergio well. He is working incredibly hard to come back. That is the most important thing.
“He needs a little time but we must be patient. We want him back but if the knee responds well he will be back, for sure.”
ZACK STEFFEN PREVIEW
WE’RE NOT REALLY HERE
Paul Dickov, Kevin Horlock and Steven McInerney (Esteemed Kompany) are the guests for the We’re Not Really Here match day show as we take on Marseille on Wednesday evening.
They will be joined by CityTV presenter Kyle Walker and provide expert analysis and opinion ahead of our final Champions League Group C clash.
We’re Not Really Here provides a City focused perspective to your pre-match build-up and begins one hour before kick-off at 19:00 (UK).
You can also listen to live commentary via City+ with Alistair Mann and Michael Brown providing coverage and opinion.
We return to the studio at half-time for a brief round-up on the opening 45 minutes.
Then, five minutes after the final whistle, we’ll be live for half an hour of post-match reaction, when our guests will dissect the game and respond to the fans’ Man of the Match poll, questions, and comments.
We will also hear a player’s reaction and, time permitting, watch Guardiola’s post-match press conference.
We’re Not Really Here is available to watch on all of our official digital platforms, whilst during the game there will be live commentary and footage of fans around the world, which you can enjoy exclusively on mancity.com and our official app.
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TV listings
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