Opposition watch | Manchester City (FA Cup)

It's the tie of the fourth round as we take on holders and last season's treble winners Manchester City in the FA Cup at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Friday evening (8pm UK). Here's a closer look at City...

Form

City are on a run of one loss in 19 in all competitions going back to October, and they've won their last six on the trot, again in all competitions, including lifting the FIFA Club World Cup in December. The FA Cup holders took a while to get going in the third round against Huddersfield at the Etihad, but Phil Foden's opener on 33 minutes opened the floodgates to a 5-0 win. Last time out, they came from 2-1 down to beat Newcastle 3-2 on 13 January, mainly thanks to a hugely-influential return to Premier League action for Kevin de Bruyne, who scored the equaliser before setting up Oscar Bobb's late winner.

Players to watch

All eyes now on Kevin de Bruyne, who returned after the best part of five months out with a hamstring injury off the bench in the third round against Huddersfield, and then made quite an impact on his return to Premier League action, again off the bench, at Newcastle last time out. City were trailing 2-1 when he took to the field on 74 minutes, but the Belgium playmaker scored within five minutes of entering the fray, then provided the assist for Oscar Bobb's late winner. Twice an FA Cup winner with City amongst a host of team and individual honours, de Bruyne's return needless to say lifts everyone in Sky Blue. Norwegian forward Bobb has also caught the eye of late and, at 20, has 20 appearances this season. Erling Haaland and John Stones, key players in City's strongest XI, have returned to training after injury. Jeremy Doku, a summer arrival from Rennes, has added lightning pace to City's armoury, but it's the guile of Bernardo Silva in the forward areas that often makes a difference. The influence of Rodrigo in the central areas, both extinguishing opponents' attacks and weighing in with important goals (four in 17 in the Premier League in 2023/24), can't be underestimated. Former Spur Kyle Walker, 229 appearances here between 2010-2017, now 33, shows no signs of letting up - he featured 39 times in all competitions as City won the treble last season, and has played 28 times this season. He's now up to 81 England caps, having won his first as a Spur back in 2011.

Manager - Pep Guardiola

One of the most influential figures in modern football, Guardiola came through Barcelona's La Masia Academy system from the age of 13, made his debut in 1990 and remained in the side for the next 11 years, winning six La Liga titles, the European Cup (against Sampdoria at Wembley in 1992) and Olympic gold with Spain (also in 1992). He later played in Italy, Qatar and Mexico and won 47 caps for Spain. His coaching journey also started at the Nou Camp, first with Barcelona B, then onto the first team in 2008. He led the Catalan giants to 13 major trophies including three La Liga titles and two Champions Leagues before a switch to Bayern Munich in 2012, where he also won a hat-trick of titles in the Bundesliga. He joined City in 2016 and has taken 14 major trophies to the blue half of Manchester, including five Premier League titles and the big one, City's first Champions League success as part of the treble last season, their latest silverware the FIFA Club World Cup in December.

Last time we met

You don't have look back too far for another incredible encounter between the teams, a thrilling 3-3 draw in the Premier League at the Etihad on 3 December. It was another game with just about everything as we once again led early, this time Heung-Min Son on target, prompting another City comeback, this time Sonny's own goal and Phil Foden putting the home side 2-1 up at the break. Gio Lo Celso levelled (69 minutes), Jack Grealish restored City's lead (81) only for Dejan Kulusevski to make it three goals in three appearances at the Etihad with a headed equaliser on 90 minutes.

How to follow

Friday evening's tie will be broadcast live on terrestrial television - ITV1 - with live radio commentary via BBC Radio 5 Live. You can listen to BBC Radio London's commentary via our Match Centre here on tottenhamhotspur.com and the Spurs Official app, where you’ll also find minute-by-minute text, goal alerts, stats and much more. Look out for our social media updates on X and Instagram. Video highlights will be available on SPURSPLAY and tottenhamhotspur.com from 12 noon on Saturday. Also, look out for our Review Show with post-match reaction and analysis from presenter Ben Haines and guests on SPURSPLAY and YouTube. Worldwide broadcast listings are available via the link on this page...