Pep Guardiola passes up Champions League preparation as Liverpool FC target gives Man City scare

If Manchester City were feeling at all sluggish after the mid-season break, the frenetic start to Saturday’s 4-1 FA Cup fourth-round win against Fulham certainly blew away the cobwebs.

Liverpool target Fabio Carvalho possibly gave us a glimpse of future title races when he stole in to convert Harry Wilson’s fourth-minute cross.

An outside-of-the-foot pass from Joao Cancelo, a penetrating dribble from Phil Foden, Riyad Mahrez cutting onto his trusty left foot and Ilkay Gundogan arriving into the box to finish coolly were all very familiar elements as the Blues found a swift response.

But, even as John Stones again highlighted City’s under-rated strength from set-pieces by heading home Kevin De Bruyne’s left-wing corner, thoughts of the unfamiliar - both unfolding and still to come - continued to occupy the mind.

Fulham have rattled in an incredible 79 goals so far this season to sit top of the Championship and they played with the intent you would expect from such a team in a cup tie with nothing to lose.

The half-time statistics bore out a contest that looked unlike most of those that unfold at the Etihad Stadium. According to Opta, the game’s action areas were very even, with 27.2 per cent of the match taking place in City’s defensive third - shaded only slightly by 30.3% in the business end of Fulham territory.

Before Riyad Mahrez pulled them clear early in the second half, City were getting put through an unusual amount of work before and it felt like Pep Guardiola might have missed a trick with his defensive selection.

Kyle Walker will sit out both legs of the Champions League meeting with Sporting Lisbon on account of his rush of blood in Leipzig, with the first leg of the last-16 encounter taking place in the