Manchester City begin the defence of their Carabao Cup title against Norwich City at the Etihad Stadium on Thursday, with Enzo Maresca’s side looking to make it six straight wins in all competitions.
The Citizens won last season’s final 2-0 against Arsenal, and Philippe Clement’s Norwich arrive as significant underdogs having reached this stage with away wins over MK Dons and Cardiff City. Man City have won 39 of their 72 meetings with Norwich across history, including victories in each of their last three, with the Canaries failing to score in any of those matches.
Maresca is expected to make widespread changes after Sunday’s draining derby win over Manchester United, with Phil Foden suspended following his red card at Old Trafford and Jeremy Doku unlikely to be risked because of a calf issue.
Manchester City vs Norwich City – Match preview and team news
Date: Thursday, 17 September 2026
Kick-off: 19:30 BST
Venue: Etihad Stadium
Referee: Ruebyn Ricardo
Last meeting: Manchester City 4-0 Norwich City (Premier League, February 2022)
Team news
Manchester City
Man City will be without the suspended Phil Foden, while Jeremy Doku remains a doubt with a calf problem and is unlikely to be risked. Summer signings Geronimo Rulli and Allan are both in line for their debuts, with Gianluigi Donnarumma given a rest ahead of Sunday’s Premier League visit of Sunderland.
Norwich City
Norwich will be without Gabriel Forsyth, Mirko Topic, Ali Ahmed and Lucien Mahovo, all sidelined with knee injuries. Daniel Grimshaw is set for a second EFL Cup appearance of the campaign in goal, while in-form forward Mohamed Toure, who has scored five goals in seven appearances this season, could be held back on the bench.
Form
Manchester City
Man City have won five straight matches in all competitions, a run that includes a Champions League victory over Porto and Sunday’s controversial derby win courtesy of Erling Haaland’s disputed goal. Maresca’s side sit second in the Premier League on 12 points from four matches, with only their Community Shield defeat to Arsenal interrupting an otherwise perfect start to the season.
Norwich City
Norwich’s promising cup run has not been matched domestically, with the Canaries losing four of their opening seven Championship matches and sitting 12th in the table after Saturday’s 4-3 defeat to Middlesbrough. They have, however, won four of their last six matches across all competitions, including EFL Cup victories over MK Dons and Cardiff City to reach this stage.
Predicted lineups
Manchester City predicted XI (4-2-3-1): Rulli; Khusanov, Reis, Guehi, Lewis; Kovacic, Bouaddi; Allan, Ndiaye, Semenyo; Haaland
Norwich City predicted XI (4-2-3-1): Grimshaw; Stacey, McConville, Cordoba, Chrisene; Wright, Mattsson; Maghoma, Schwartau, Musaba; Makama
How to watch Manchester City vs Norwich City?
The match will be broadcast live in the United Kingdom on Sky Sports+.
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