Hello and welcome to Sports Mole's live text coverage of the Premier League clash between Manchester City and Everton at the Etihad Stadium.
The hosts come into this match having lost for the first time in their title defence last weekend, but a victory or a draw would take them back above Liverpool at the top of the table today.
Everton, meanwhile, could leapfrog Manchester United into sixth with a win, but they have picked up maximum points just once in their last five outings.
Make sure you don't miss a moment of the action courtesy of Sports Mole's minute-by-minute updates below.
City come into this match for once not leading the way in the table after their unbeaten start was ended last weekend, and Everton are about as close to a bogey team as they have had in recent years, so this one should be an interesting encounter.
We will have a look at both teams a little later, but first let's check out the team news...
Well, we'll start with the hosts, who once again make an interesting selection as their injury concerns continue to mount. Arguably the most interesting part of it is actually the bench, though, with both Sergio Aguero and Kevin De Bruyne included amongst the subs.
De Bruyne has barely featured at all this season due to two separate knee injuries, while Aguero has missed the last four games with a groin problem. Guardiola is clearly wary about rushing either back during such a busy period.
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Riyad Mahrez comes into the team instead of the in-form winger, while Leroy Sane continues on the opposite flank with Gabriel Jesus through the middle. Jesus was left out in favour of having no recognised striker against Chelsea last weekend, but did start against Hoffenheim in midweek.
Otamendi and Laporte continue at the heart of the defence having also both started in midweek, but Fabian Delph replaces Zinchenko on the left as Guardiola makes four changes overall from Wednesday's win.
The changes made once again highlight the strength in depth of this Man City side, but they have also been hit hard by injuries so the returns of some key players to the matchday squad for this one will be a timely boost.
Michael Keane, Kurt Zouma and Yerry Mina all start at centre-back, which means that Seamus Coleman - who scored an own goal last time out - and Lucas Digne - who rescued the day with a late equaliser - will act as the wing-backs.
One player missing from that midfield is Idrissa Gueye, though, as he has failed to recover from the injury which forced him off during that draw with Watford earlier this week.
It looks as though Calvert-Lewin will lead the line this afternoon, which will mean that Richarlison is forced into a wider position. The Brazilian is more than comfortable with that, but he has been Everton's focal point in attack for much of the season so far.
Sigurdsson has also stepped up on the goal front this term - with the exception of that penalty on Monday - but Everton could do with one or two others helping to share the burden with Richarlison.
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City did return to winning ways in midweek by coming from behind to beat Hoffenheim in the Champions League, but now they must respond on the domestic front after their first major slip-up of the Premier League season.
It seemed as though their opening goal had given them the belief that they can take the game to City and do not have to be afraid of Guardiola's men, and that is a lesson many other teams may have learned from that game too. It poses an interesting new test to this City side, who had swept pretty much all in front of them before that.
One thing is for sure - we are set for a much more exciting title chase than we had last season. City had the title all-but wrapped up already at this stage of 2017-18, sitting 11 points clear, whereas this time there are five teams within seven points of them.
Indeed, looking even further back City have lost just three of their last 62 Premier League games, and it is two years since they lost back-to-back matches in the top flight.
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Guardiola's side needed to come from behind twice to rescue a draw against Lyon in the Champions League before producing a rather laboured performance against Bournemouth - albeit en route to a 3-1 win. A late scare followed against Watford before their Chelsea defeat and coming from behind against Hoffenheim.
Indeed, all season City have won 11 of their 12 home outings, including all eight in the Premier League to extend their impressive run to just one defeat in their last 39 home top-flight matches.
It is 51 league games since City fell to a defeat against a team outside the current top six - a run that has seen them win 44 games, amass 139 points from the 153 on offer and stretches back to January 2017, when they suffered a 4-0 defeat at the hands of today's opponents, incidentally.
The Toffees have produced some decent performances against the teams above them in the table so far this season, which has helped them record their best points tally at this stage of a season since 2013-14.
On the flip side, though, a defeat could see Everton end the weekend in the bottom half of the table depending on results elsewhere, with little separating those teams in the middle section of the standings at the moment.
The Toffees come into this match winless in three as well, having suffered a galling late derby defeat to Liverpool at Anfield before only managing draws against Newcastle United and an out-of-form Watford side. Struggling Cardiff are the only team Everton have beaten in their last five games.
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Marco Silva will know that too many points have been dropped in draws in recent weeks, but the most recent of those will have felt like a win courtesy of Lucas Digne's last-gasp free kick against Watford on Monday night.
Watford did ultimately deserve something out of the contest, but Everton will be bemoaning some bad luck having seen Coleman score a poor own goal in addition to the penalty miss.
Indeed, the problem stretches back further than that too; Everton have won only six of their last 43 Premier League away games since the start of the 2016-17 campaign, and this term only five teams have amassed fewer points on the road.
The Toffees are winless in their last 32 away league games against teams that finished in the top six last season, a run which includes 22 defeats and stretches back five years.
Everton are not likely to make this easy for Man City, but it is hard to back against Guardiola's side at home - even off the back of their first league defeat of the campaign. We're going for City to extend their 100% home start to the season.
SPORTS MOLE SAYS: Man City 3-1 Everton
Only against Liverpool (20%) do they have a lower win percentage of teams they have faced at least three times since Guardiola took charge, while they have also conceded seven goals against Everton in the Spaniard's reign - more than against any other team.
The past seven league and cup meetings between these two sides have been evenly matched at two wins apiece and three draws, although City won the most recent contest 3-1 at Goodison Park in March, scoring all of their goals in the opening 37 minutes.
Last season's corresponding fixture ended 1-1, with Sterling rescuing a point for City in what was the only game they failed to win in the opening months of the season. Wayne Rooney had given Everton the lead.
MAN CITY STARTING XI: Ederson; Walker, Otamendi, Laporte, Delph; Bernardo, Fernandinho, Gundogan; Mahrez, Jesus, Sane
EVERTON STARTING XI: Pickford; Keane, Zouma, Mina; Coleman, Sigurdsson, Gomes, Digne; Bernard, Calvert-Lewin, Richarlison
Sane provides the killer pass, and Jesus is there to slide it beyond Pickford at the near post for his first Premier League goal in four months.
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#MCFC LEAD!
Jesus scores his first goal in four months!
Watch live on Sky Sports PL NOW or follow here: https://t.co/GlsPgqK8pA pic.twitter.com/8QqdMrcSJB— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) December 15, 2018
Most PL assists since the start of last season:
21 – L. Sane 🥇
17 – R. Sterling
16 – K. De Bruyne
16 – C. Eriksen
14 – A Ramsey
14 – M. Salah pic.twitter.com/gTIctmXGL8— Sky Sports Statto (@SkySportsStatto) December 15, 2018
The hosts have dominated possession and created the majority of the chances, but Everton are still very much in the contest and will have been buoyed by many of the things they did in that first half.
It was a goal Everton could well have avoided, though, with Mina giving the ball away when trying to play out from the back and then playing Jesus onside when he couldn't get back in time quickly enough.
Laporte and Delph have also threatened, while Pickford has been forced into one really good reaction stop to deny Keane from turning the ball into his own net.
Digne's lofted ball to the back post found the Brazilian coming in unmarked, but he went for the volley when he perhaps would have been better going for a diving header and blasted his finish over the crossbar.
Sane is again the provider, clipping a cross into the middle for the Brazilian, who gets in between two defenders and then produces a really good headed finish.
2 - Leroy Sané has assisted both of Gabriel Jesus' goals this afternoon - before today, none of the German's 23 Premier League assists had been for Jesus. Mates. #MCIEVE— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) December 15, 2018
Lookman exchanges passes with Richarlison in the buildup before the ball drops to Digne, who hangs a cross up into the middle. Calvert-Lewin finds himself up against Delph in the air and plants his header firmly into the bottom corner past a helpless Ederson.
Fernandinho exchanges passes with Jesus on his way to the byline and then stands a cross up into the middle, where Sterling is waiting unmarked to nod home.
Gabriel Jesus ended his Premier League drought with two goals to put City in command, but Calvert-Lewin's goal back did make things interesting. That was only very brief, though, as Raheem Sterling produced a quick response to effectively wrap up the points for the champions.
Thank you very much for joining Sports Mole for today's match as Manchester City move back to the top of the Premier League table with victory over Everton. I will leave you with our match report, and be sure to stick around for reaction too!
From me, though, it is goodbye for now!