Team news, stats and prediction ahead of Manchester City vs Liverpool in the Premier League on Sunday; kick-off 4.30pm.

Team news

Sergio Aguero has been ruled out of Manchester City's big Premier League clash with champions Liverpool in front of the Sky Sports cameras.

City's all-time leading goalscorer has missed the last three games with a hamstring injury but though he had been given an outside chance of featuring, Pep Guardiola confirmed at his press conference: "No, he is not ready, not yet."

As Aguero focuses on returning after the international break, Gabriel Jesus could start after scoring on his comeback from a thigh injury in midweek.

Left-back Benjamin Mendy and midfielder Fernandinho remain on the sidelines.

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Liverpool midfielder Thiago Alcantara is not ready for the trip to the Etihad.

The Spaniard, left out of his country's forthcoming international matches, has missed the last five games with a knee problem.

In-form forward Diogo Jota is fit after a knock in the midweek Champions League win over Atalanta and his hat-trick in that match means he is pushing Roberto Firmino for a starting place, while centre-back Joel Matip could come in for the first time since mid-September.

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• Super 6 Extra! Six Man City vs Liverpool questions to win £5k
• Jamie Carragher's big match preview
• Jurgen Klopp: Most difficult game in football

How to follow

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Manchester City vs Liverpool will be broadcast live on Sky Sports Premier League from 4pm on Super Sunday; kick-off at 4.30pm. Sky Sports customers can watch in-game clips in the live match blog on the Sky Sports website and app. Highlights will also be published on the Sky Sports digital platforms and the Sky Sports Football YouTube channel shortly after the final whistle.

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Jones Knows' prediction

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A monster of a football match.

I just hope we get a cleanly run affair in order to gauge a true understanding of what levels these two teams are operating at. For the last two campaigns, these two have been streets ahead of the rest. Is that still the case? Are these two still the standard-bearers for the Premier League?

I would say Liverpool certainly are. Barring the anomaly at Aston Villa, they have put in some excellent performances with their full-backs, central midfield and deadly front three still the best in the business.

However, I am yet to be convinced that City are the same beast though. I would say they are massively vulnerable this season for a top-two finish.

This has been the worst start after six league games in Guardiola's 12-season senior managerial career. His City side have won fewer games, scored fewer goals and conceded more goals than in any of his previous seasons in charge of Barcelona, Bayern Munich and City.

At this stage of last season, City had already scored 24 goals, they have just nine this time around. The intensity without the ball has also looks toned down, something that you cannot accuse Liverpool of.

I think this is a bigger game for City than it is for Liverpool in that regard. They have more questions to answer. More points to prove.

• Merse: Man City must beat Liverpool
• Dunne: City vs Liverpool almost a title-decider

A defeat would leave them nine points adrift of Jurgen Klopp's team. Even at this stage, that is a huge gap to chase down. All those factors make Liverpool a very tempting proposition at 12/5 for an away win. It is not often you can get prices of such juice about a team than ran away with the title just a few months ago and remain consistently operating to the same performance level.

JONES KNOWS PREDICTS: 1-3 (20/1 with Sky Bet)

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Opta stats

• Manchester City have won their last three home league games against Liverpool by an aggregate score of 11-1. They've not won four consecutively against the Reds at home since March 1937.
• Liverpool haven't kept a clean sheet in any of their last 10 away league games against Man City, conceding 26 goals in total in that run (W1 D2 L7).
• Manchester City have won nine of their last 10 Premier League games against reigning champions, with the only exception in that run being a 2-4 loss at Leicester in December 2016. However, they've won none of their last 11 when facing Liverpool as the previous season's title winner (D2 L9) since a 3-1 win in October 1977.
• Manchester City are looking to win consecutive league games for the first time this season. The Citizens have scored exactly once in each of their last four matches - they last went five consecutive Premier League matches without netting more than once back in March 2009.
• Liverpool have conceded 15 goals in their seven Premier League games this season, as many as they shipped in their first 26 league games last term. Indeed, it's the most the Reds have conceded seven games into a league campaign since 1964-65 (also 15).
• Since the start of last season, Liverpool have won a league-high 28 points from losing positions in the Premier League, coming from behind to win each of their last two games. The Reds have never won three consecutive Premier League games when conceding first, with Arsenal in March 2012 (4) the last to do so in the competition.
• In their six Premier League games this season, Man City have scored just nine goals (1.5 per game) and have an expected goals (xG) figure of 7.9 (1.3 per game). It's their lowest xG per game rate in the competition since we have this data available (2013-14), while it's their lowest goals-per-game rate in the league since 2007-08 (1.2).
• Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has lost more games against Liverpool's Jürgen Klopp than he has any other manager in his career (8).
• Mohamed Salah has scored 80 Premier League goals in 115 games for Liverpool since joining the Reds in 2017, at least nine more than any other player in the division in that time.
• Two of Diogo Jota's three goals for Liverpool in the Premier League this season have been as a substitute - no other player has scored more than once from the bench in the competition so far this term.

Pitch to Post Preview Podcast: Jamie Carragher on Man City v Liverpool; Steve Bruce on Callum Wilson; Chelsea's title chances assessed

Jamie Carragher and Steve Bruce are among the guests on this week's Pitch to Post Preview Podcast.

Sky Sports pundit Carragher joins Peter Smith and Adam Bate to look ahead to the big Super Sunday clash between Man City and Liverpool, while Steve Bruce is on the line to discuss Newcastle's Friday Night Football trip to Southampton and the form of star striker Callum Wilson.

Also on the show we analyse how Chelsea have turned around their defensive problems, how Leicester have coped with injury problems, and Adam makes a bold Pitch.

Listen to the Sky Sports Pitch to Post Podcast on: Spotify | Apple | Castbox

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