Manchester City v Blackpool RECAP: Updates as Seasiders take on Pep Guardiola's men in final pre-season friendly

Neil Critchley hinted on Saturday he would make changes for this game and it appears that will be the case.

Team news to come in five minutes.

“There are still lots of things we need to improve, but it was a good test.

“The best way to get condition and remember what we are is to play games, so next Tuesday we have another one. For the players, that’s good.

“Saturday was a good test because Barnsley wanted to play, they tried to play. We created chances and we defended well, so it was a good game.

“We have young players involved who we’re trying to give as many minutes as possible, because in seven days we have the Community Shield final.

“We don’t have much time, but we will give minutes and that’s good.

“On Saturday, we give half an hour to Oleksandr (Zinchenko) and Ilkay (Gundogan), which was their first minutes with us. I will continue to try to do this.

“We’re still far away. There are a lot of things to improve. We will train on Sunday and then Tuesday night we have another game before the final.

“We will have two or three more players coming back in training and then another one at the end of the week, so step-by-step everyone is coming back.

“We never take too many conclusions from pre-season though. The important thing is to get no injuries.”

“We had an invitation from Man City on Friday to play a game against them on Tuesday.

“When you get an invitation like that, it takes about a second to agree to it.

“Even though they’ll be missing a lot of players because of the Euros, they’ll still be able to name a lot of top, top-quality players in their squad and it is their first-team.

“It will be great for our players to play against players like that. It will be a fantastic chance to test our defensive side of the game, that’s for certain.

“But what it will do, because we missed the (cancelled) Rangers game, is give some players who haven’t had loads of minutes in pre-season some minutes.

“Because it’s pre-season, you get that flexibility around subs and you can move the team around.

“We will reflect on the Morecambe game (a 1-1 draw on Saturday) and see how we’re looking, and then we’ll prepare for a great game to look forward to.”

The reigning Premier League champions have been without a host of their key first-team players this summer as a result of Euro 2020 and Copa America.

Nevertheless, Pep Guardiola was still able to name a strong side for their 4-0 win against Barnsley on Saturday, with the likes of Ruben Dias, Nathan Ake, Benjamin Mendy, Cancelo, Oleksandr Zinchenko, Fernandinho, Ilkay Gundogan and Riyad Mahrez (above) all featuring.

City, who also beat Pool’s Lancashire rivals Preston North End in a recent friendly, now await the return of their England stars - such as Kyle Walker, Phil Foden and Raheem Sterling - and the likes of Kevin de Bruyne, who watched their game against Barnsley from the stands at the weekend.

Ahead of Tuesday’s game, Guardiola revealed “two or three” of his first-team stars could return to take on the Seasiders.

City get their competitive campaign underway in the Community Shield on Saturday, when they take on FA Cup winners Leicester City at Wembley.

Guardiola’s men have beaten PNE 2-0 and Barnsley 4-0 in their two friendlies so far this summer.

Demetri Mitchell is a doubt for today’s encounter after injuring his knee during Saturday’s 1-1 draw against Morecambe.

The full extent of the winger’s injury is currently unknown, but Mitchell is unlikely to be risked on the eve of Blackpool’s league opener.

Elsewhere, Kenny Dougall (above) is also unlikely to feature, despite making good progress in his recovery from a knee problem.

Last season’s Wembley hero could return to training this week and hasn’t yet been ruled out of the weekend’s curtain raiser at Ashton Gate.

Daniel Gretarsson (shoulder), Matty Virtue (ACL) and Gary Madine (groin) remain sidelined, while Teddy Howe, Bez Lubala and Joe Nuttall haven’t featured all summer.

Latest signing Tyreece John-Jules could be handed a first start for the Seasiders after coming off the bench against Morecambe at the weekend.

The Seasiders meet Pep Guardiola’s side in a behind-closed-doors friendly at the top flight side’s academy stadium, which is on the same site as their Etihad ground.

Work on the pitch at the Etihad means City are not using it until the season starts.

The friendly is taking place behind closed doors after recent Covid-19 cases in City’s academy set up. With the isolation period having just ended, City wanted to limit the amount of people on site.

The game, which will be against Man City’s first-team, kicks off at the earlier time of 6pm.

It will serve as the Seasiders final friendly of the summer before they kick their league season off at Bristol City on Saturday.

And welcome to today’s live blog.

Blackpool end their pre-season tonight against the best team in the land - the reigning Premier League champions Manchester City.

It will be the final test - and what a test it will be - for Neil Critchley’s men before they get their Championship campaign underway at Bristol City on Saturday.

Follow our blog for all the build-up, team news and match updates.