Manchester City fans here in the pub will be expecting a big response from their players this week after the disastrous result against Leicester City on Saturday!

The Citizens were brushed aside by the Premier League champions, who raced into a 3-0 first-half lead with such relative ease, you’d have thought City were struggling at the bottom of the table.

But alas, the Foxes were good value for their win and despite two second-half goals, Pep Guardiola’s side couldn’t level the scores and they came away from the East Midlands empty handed.

And much to the annoyance of our City-mad landlord, they’re now seven points off the top of the Premier League table and have a lot of making up to do over a hectic Christmas schedule.

But with a tie against Watford coming up on Wednesday evening, City have a great chance to get back in and around the frontrunners at the top of the table.

And here in the Tavern, we’ve got enough City fans to tell us a cracking starting XI, so here’s Hayden Atkins with the line-up they should go with against Watford…

GK: Claudio Bravo

Despite some City fans still mourning the departure of Joe Hart here in the Tavern, Claudio Bravo very much remains the number one goalkeeper at the Etihad.

He’s an excellent shot-stopper but after conceding four last time out, he’ll be hoping for a quieter game against in-form Watford.

RB: Bacary Sagna

City defended chaotically against Leicester City this weekend and we’d like to see Guardiola revert back to a more simple four-back formation for the visit of Watford.

The Hornets have been flying recently and playing the same formation as they did against Leicester would be a real disaster.

CB: John Stones

Didn’t have the best afternoon against Leicester City and at times, he was ruthlessly exposed by an in-form Jamie Vardy.

But we must remember how much learning the former Everton man still has to do at this level.

He’s by far the finished product and whilst he’s good, he’s still got to enhance his game and will do that by playing games.

CB: Aleksandar Kolarov

With injuries taking ahold, Pep Guardiola will have no choice but to play Kolarov at centre-back again in the week.

He was poor against Leicester but at times, he’s been okay filling in for the likes of Otamendi.

City fans here in the Tavern can’t wait for the Argentine to return though.

LB: Gael Clichy

We’d like to see Gael Clichy come back into the starting XI for the game against Watford, purely because he’s a player that knows the position well and he’s a man with plenty of top-flight experience.

City need a bit of stability right now and playing an old hand like the Frenchman isn’t a bad idea in the slightest.

CDM: Yaya Toure

Was introduced far too late in the game against Leicester City and there are plenty of City fans here in the pub that wanted to see Yaya Toure on the pitch from the get-go.

He offers so much physicality in the middle-of-the-park and his talent is wasted on the bench at times.

Now all appears to be sorted with his agent and the City management, there should be no reason why he’s not starting games.

CDM: Fernando

Like Yaya Toure and Fernandinho, Fernando offers plenty of protection when he sits infront of the defence.

He’s a solid, compact and tidy midfielder who is excellent at breaking up play in the middle-of-the-park.

With a couple of results going against them in the past couple of weeks, Fernando will need to be on form against Watford.

RM: David Silva

Things have been far too loose at City this season and it’s common knowledge that Pep Guardiola has been rattling through players at an extraordinary rate.

David Silva is one of City’s best forward players and at times, he can be a different class.

But City are at risk of falling into a bit of a rut and senior players like Silva really need to step up, and get the job done against a Watford side they should be beating.

CAM: Kevin De Bruyne

No-one quite knew where Kevin De Bruyne was supposed to be playing against Leicester City.

More often than not, he was found almost at left-back, rather than in his normal attacking role.

But we all know, his best position is in behind the striker, pulling the strings from the top of the side.

He’s been in good form earlier on this season but like many others in the side, he needs to really get back to his old self if City are to keep pace at the top.

LM: Nolito

Nolito came on against Leicester and made an instant impact, bringing much-needed quality and calm to the City forward line.

He managed a last-minute goal and whilst it didn’t make much of a difference to matters on the night, it was still a contribution that few of his team-mates could muster throughout the game.

ST: Kelechi Iheanacho

The pressure is on Kelechi Iheanacho in the absence of Sergio Aguero and he’s got a couple of weeks to really make an impression on the City bosses.

Whilst he didn’t making a real difference against Leicester, you’ve got to remember he’s a young striker and has a lot of developing to do still.

He’s got another chance to go again against the Hornets and he’ll be hoping to get back on the scoresheet.