Manchester

Simon Stone
Chief football news reporter

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Kevin de Bruyne's presence at the Etihad Stadium - on a day when City boss Pep Guardiola named only five outfield substitutes - offered a reminder that a decision needs to be made about the Belgian's future.

De Bruyne's contract expires at the end of the season and there are strong rumours linking the brilliant playmaker with a move to the new San Diego FC MLS franchise.

Given San Diego launch in the 2025 season, it would be fair to assume they would like their key men to be ready to join in the January transfer window.

So, while most of the talk at City has centred around whether Guardiola will stay, De Bruyne's future is also of major importance, given he is one of the club's highest paid players and has also spent rather a large amount of time on the injured list recently.

If De Bruyne was to leave, it would offer the financial flexibility to bring in a top-class replacement, who would be available for the majority of games, which feels like what Guardiola wants right now.

We are about to head into November - plans for the second half of the season need to be put in place.

Clarification over Kevin de Bruyne's future would be most welcome.

Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has been speaking to BBC Match of the Day following the win: "The way they played, they are so demanding. They defend with the ball. You can defend with the ball and they are really good [at it], one of the best in the Premier League.

"They didn’t create many chances, but we created a lot. Unfortunately we could not score the second. Big credit to them - it wasn't because we were sloppy or flat, I don't have that feeling. I think we were there and sometimes they were good. We have to accept that."

On Erling Haaland: "It isn't easy for him because every cross is a penalty for Erling - the way they pull him. We created more and we couldn't score the second [goal], but Erling is a guarantee for us."

On Savinho and Matheus Nunes: "They were really good. Savinho created all the chances, right to left - I would say really good. Matheus is not in a position that is his natural position again, so offensively and defensively, to make another assist, he played really good."

On Mateo Kovacic: "He is an incredible man and player. We miss Rodri a lot this season, he is such an important player, but at the same time we have to continue to do it."

On whether he will have any injured players back against Tottenham: "I don't think so. We will see what happens. In this calendar, the Carabao Cup is just to play with the young players. We will see if we play with academy players or see how they come back fresh from that."

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Manchester City midfielder Bernardo Silva has been speaking to Sky Sports following their 1-0 win against Southampton: "We have a lot of respect for all the teams in the Premier League. These guys we played today, I watched the games they played in the season and I think they deserve a lot more points than what they have got.

"They press high and they try to build up with the ball. It makes it very difficult to press them because if you go man-to-man in the middle then it is not easy for our defenders.

"A tough game for us, but very happy with the three points.

"We are used to when teams defend deep against us, it makes it more difficult and we have to be patient. We are used to that.

"We had our chances to score three or four goals, but they deserve a lot of credit for what they did here today."

Were you at the game or following from elsewhere?

Have your say on Man City's performance, external

What did you make of Southampton’s display?, external

Come back to this page on Monday to find a selection of your replies

West Ham and Manchester United harboured ambitions of European qualification this season, but both sit in the bottom half of the Premier League after eight games.

With both Julen Lopetegui and Erik ten Hag coming under fire for their underwhelming starts, who needs a victory more when the two teams play each other on Sunday?

Former Hammers goalkeeper David James tells The Football News Show why he thinks Manchester United are a "glorified Tottenham" and why a win for West Ham would kickstart their season.

Watch The Football News Show on iPlayer

Five matches make up Saturday's Premier League action, and we will bring you every moment.

• Aston Villa v Bournemouth - listen on BBC Radio 5 Live

• Brentford v Ipswich

• Brighton v Wolves

• Manchester City v Southampton

• Everton v Fulham - 17:30 - listen on BBC Radio 5 Live

Kick-offs 15:00 BST unless stated

Follow all of the action and reaction here

Sutton is making predictions for all 380 Premier League matches this season, against a variety of guests.

For week nine he takes on rapper Nemzzz, who supports Manchester United.

Sutton's prediction: 4-0

I just don't know how Southampton pick themselves up from last week's defeat by Leicester, and there is only one outcome here.

It will be a rearguard action from the off by Saints - but they will end up losing. It is a question of how long they can hold out for, and then how many goals Manchester City will score.

In the Fantasy Premier League community, everyone is talking about triple captaining Erling Haaland, because he has not scored in his past three league games.

I'm saying Haaland will not score this week either, but City will score four and keep a clean sheet for the first time in the Premier League since their opening game of the season. They have to stop conceding eventually, surely.

Nemzzz's prediction: 3-1

As much as I am with United, City are just so hard to stop.

Read the full predictions and have your say here

Manchester City captain Kyle Walker talks former City midfielder Michael Brown through Adama Traore outpacing him in a duel during City's recent Premier League win against Fulham.

Listen to You'll Never Beat Kyle Walker on BBC Sounds

Mike Minay
BBC Radio Manchester reporter

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You may have read my comments on Thursday having spoken to Phil Foden after the win over Sparta Prague.

He said he was "back" and his manager, Pep Guardiola, is delighted he is. In a season in which City are being hampered by injuries to key players, in a squad that is already small, having the likes of Foden getting back to his best could really help them in this middle third of the season.

I asked the 24-year-old how far he was from being the player who scored 19 goals in the Premier League last season. Guardiola is not bothered because of the "natural talent" that the forward possesses.

"When he's fine, he will get it," said Guardiola.

"He's a natural talent. The first goal against Sparta Prague, Phil, with his talent, solved the game for himself."

There were many examples on Wednesday of 'classic Foden'. The ball runs across his body, he looks up from a central position and unleashes a shot that can sometimes result in a spectacular goal.

"In a career of many years, and Phil has many years already, you have these bumps - ups and downs," Guardiola added.

“Try to reduce these short setbacks as quick as possible. Be patient, let them [players struggling for form] know that we are there. Everything is going well."

Commentary on Saturday with me and Steve Eyre - who once coached Foden at City's academy - is on BBC Radio Manchester from 14:00 BST.

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Earlier, we asked you to identify the former Manchester City player from their Premier League statistics playing for the club.

The correct answer was Yaya Toure.