Mahrez, Sokratis and Guendouzi make Premier League debuts

Riyad Mahrez is straight into the Manchester City team for the first game of the season, with Ainsley Maitland-Niles starting for Arsenal.

Published : Aug 12, 2018 20:29 IST

Matteo Guendouzi and Sokratis Papastathopoulos make their Premier League debuts in Unai Emery's Arsenal bow, with Riyad Mahrez put straight into the Manchester City team by Pep Guardiola.

The champion only made a signing to add to the squad that won the league by 19 points last term and Mahrez starts in place of Leroy Sane in City's frontline.

With Sead Kolasinac and Nacho Monreal both ruled out through injury, Danny Welbeck was trialled by Emery at left-back in the build-up to Sunday's game at Emirates Stadium.

READ: Liverpool 4 West Ham 0: Salah and Mane see off Hammers

But, Emery has, instead, opted for Ainsley Maitland-Niles to fill in, with Sokratis partnering Shkodran Mustafi in the heart of the Arsenal defence, while Petr Cech gets the gloves, rather than new signing Bernd Leno.

Kevin De Bruyne is fit enough only for a place on City's bench, having returned to training after the World Cup this week, while Sergio Aguero is preferred to Gabriel Jesus after the Brazilian failed to score at Russia 2018.

De Bruyne's fellow Belgium international Vincent Kompany is also on the bench, meaning January arrival Aymeric Laporte starts alongside John Stones at the back.

Sign in to unlock all user benefits
  • Get notified on top games and events
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign up / manage to our newsletters with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early bird access to discounts & offers to our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide to our community guidelines for posting your comment