The initial lineups for Saturday’s FA Cup quarter-final clash at the Etihad Stadium have been revealed by Manchester City and Liverpool.
By overcoming the Merseysiders on two occasions in the Premier League this season, the Manchester club concluded a four-game winless streak and a two-match losing run in this fixture.
With eight FA Cup trophies, Liverpool boast one more than City, whose most recent success in the tournament was in 2023, a year subsequent to Liverpool’s last victory.
101GreatGoals.com provides the latest squad updates and initial formations as Man City welcome Liverpool for their FA Cup encounter.
Ready to go in Manchester 🎬 pic.twitter.com/IhLiADcqYq
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) April 4, 2026
Manchester City’s announced lineup against Liverpool
John Stones will miss the game for City, having picked up a slight knock while with the England squad, and fellow defender Ruben Dias is also dealing with a hamstring problem.
Manager Pep Guardiola will be absent from the touchline for the penultimate fixture of a two-game suspension, having amassed half a dozen cautions this campaign.
Manchester City starting XI: Trafford, Nunes, Khusanov, Guéhi, O’Reilly, Rodri, Bernardo Silva, Semenyo, Cherki, Doku, Haaland
Man City substitutes: Donnarumma, Reijnders, Ake, Marmoush, Kovacic, Nico, Ait-Nouri, Savinho, Foden
Liverpool’s complete lineup against Manchester City
Shot-stopper Alisson Becker, backline players Conor Bradley and Giovanni Leoni, and central player Wataru Endo will all be unavailable for Liverpool, who are making three alterations to their side.
Mohamed Salah returns after being unavailable for the 2-1 loss at Brighton & Hove Albion on March 21. However, forward Alexander Isak is still absent as the Sweden international continues his recovery from a fractured leg.
Hugo Ekitike features upfront, and co-attacker Federico Chiesa has also regained fitness following recent health concerns surrounding the duo.
Wing-back Jeremie Frimpong, who was considered a slight uncertainty, will start among the substitutes.
Liverpool starting XI: Mamardashvili; Gomez, Konate, Van Dijk, Kerkez; Gravenberch, Jones; Salah, Szoboszlai, Wirtz; Ekitike
Liverpool substitutes: Woodman, Mac Allister, Chiesa, Gakpo, Robertson, Frimpong, Nyoni, Ngumoha, Morrison
How to view Man City vs Liverpool: TV channel, live online streams
The match begins on Saturday, scheduled for 12:45 BST (07:45 ET / 04:45 PT). Broadcast coverage across the United Kingdom can be found on TNT Sports 1, TNT Sports Ultimate, and via the HBO Max application.
TNT Sports is priced at £30.99 per month and can be accessed through a wide array of electronic gadgets, such as internet-enabled televisions and video game systems.
Manchester City vs Liverpool statistics
- This marks the seventh FA Cup encounter between Manchester City and Liverpool; the Cityzens advanced from the initial couple following rematches in 1955/56 and 1970-73, but the Reds have subsequently triumphed in all of the most recent four, with their latest victory occurring in the 2021/22 semi-final.
- Eighteen of the last 19 clashes involving these two clubs have resulted in a minimum of two goals.
- City’s 2-0 triumph over Arsenal in the EFL Cup final on March 22 concluded a three-match winless run across all tournaments, which included suffering defeat in both stages of their Champions League fixture against Real Madrid and securing a draw against West Ham United.
- They stand a chance to secure three consecutive victories against Liverpool across all tournaments for the first time since March 1937 (when they managed 4 in a row). The most recent team to defeat Liverpool thrice within one season was West Ham in 2015/16.
- In addition to 19 victories in their previous 21 FA Cup games, City are currently on a 17-match winning streak at home in the tournament. A win in this fixture would establish this as the undisputed longest home winning run by any team in the main tournament, eclipsing Clapham Rovers’ 17 triumphs from December 1873 to February 1881.
- Since their defeat against Wigan Athletic in the 2017/18 fifth round, every one of City’s previous 31 FA Cup fixtures, excluding the semi-final and final stages, has ended in victory.
- Pep Guardiola’s side are seeking to qualify for an eighth consecutive FA Cup semi-final. Their current streak of seven is already a tournament benchmark.
- Erling Haaland has found the net in his previous three home appearances against Liverpool across all tournaments; the sole Premier League footballers (since 1992/93) to register goals in four or more consecutive home fixtures against the Merseysiders are Chris Sutton (4, from 1994 to 1996) and Sergio Aguero (5, from 2013 to 2017)
Liverpool have emerged victorious in their most recent four away FA Cup encounters against City - They have advanced beyond 17 of their last 19 FA Cup quarter-final matches, despite suffering a 4-3 defeat against Manchester United in their latest last-eight fixture in 2023/24.
- Their most recent consecutive exits from the FA Cup last-eight stage occurred in 1967-68 and 1969/70 during Bill Shankly’s tenure.
- Having secured a 3-1 away victory over Wolves in the fifth round, Liverpool are now seeking to achieve two away victories against top-flight rivals within one FA Cup season for the first time since 2005/06, when they triumphed at Portsmouth in the fourth round and Birmingham City in the quarter-finals.
- Mohamed Salah has found the net in his previous three FA Cup outings for Liverpool, notably in a last-eight match against Manchester United in 2023/24. The most recent individual to register goals in four successive FA Cup games for Liverpool was Emile Heskey in 2000/01 – whose sequence featured a strike against Manchester City in the round of 16.