Man City announce friendly with Barcelona at Nou Camp during opening weeks of Premier League season

Manchester City will travel to Barcelona after their Premier League season has got underway for a friendly match to raise money for ALS research.

City and Barcelona have announced the match, to take place on August 24 at the Nou Camp, which is dubbed 'A game for a greater cause.' It will be held for former Barcelona coach and player Juan Carlos Unzue, who suffers with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), with funds from the friendly to go towards research for the illness.

Pep Guardiola was at the Nou Camp to announce the friendly, which will take place between City's third and fourth Premier League fixtures of the season.

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City take on Newcastle away from home on August 20, will take on Barcelona in midweek, before returning to Manchester to host Crystal Palace the following weekend.

Guardiola said City will take a first-team squad for the game, which will see him face his former no.6 Xavi on the touchline for the first time, and it will be only his third return to the Nou Camp as manager after losing 3-0 with Bayern Munich in 2015 and 4-0 with City in 2016, both in the Champions League.

Guardiola said: "I'm so happy, Manchester City will take part in this, FC Barcelona have shown why they're the best, the president has bought everyone together. We need to fill the stadium, I need to get my tactics ready. We need to rest, Xavi will be there, we need to be ready."

The game will see City reunited with former players Ferran Torres and Eric Garcia, as well as Guardiola's many personal connections.

City face Club America in Houston on July 20, and Bayern Munich in Green Bay on July 23, before competing in the Community Shield