Man City host Tottenham at the Etihad on Saturday, with both teams looking to lay down a marker at the start of the Premier League season.
Pep Guardiola will want to ensure Liverpool don't gain any ground on his team and will back his players to pick up three points, despite facing a challenging opponent.
City won the domestic treble last season and have improved their squad by adding holding midfielder Rodri and full back Joao Cancelo to their roster, with the club optimistic they can retain the title once again.
Spurs, meanwhile, reached the Champions League final in a historic campaign for the club, but were inconsistent in the league and will be hoping to mount a stronger title challenge this time around, only managing to finish fourth.
Mauricio Pochettino has bolstered his squad by adding Tanguy Ndombele, Giovani Lo Celso and Ryan Sessegnon, adding flavour to a side that had become increasingly stale with the lack of fresh faces over the past couple of seasons.
With two excellent squads to select from, let's take a look at the best possible combined XI between the sides.
GK - Ederson
Ederson has established himself as one of the division's finest goalkeepers since his arrival from Benfica in 2017, drawing praise for his excellent distribution in particular, which allows City to play out of the back expertly, while a long, direct and accurate pass is also within his armoury.
Hugo Lloris is also a top keeper but is more prone to mistakes than the Brazilian, while his kicking often leaves a lot to be desired.
RB - Kyle Walker
Kyle Walker reminded everybody of his ability against West Ham last weekend, displaying incredible speed to breeze past Aaron Cresswell before picking out Gabriel Jesus to finish at the near post.
Cancelo's recent arrival has stepped up the level of competition for his spot, with the Portuguese international highly-rated and tipped to make the berth is own. However, Walker is more proven at this moment and stronger defensively, with Cancelo a specialist at getting forward.
The former Spurs man is undoubtedly superior to the inconsistent Serge Aurier and the inexperienced Kyle Walker-Peters.
CB - Toby Alderweireld
One of the most baffling things to happen in this summer's transfer market was no club activating Toby Alderweireld's £25m release clause. With unrivalled position sense and a pinpoint long-range pass, the Belgian has proven to be a bargain since his arrival in 2015.
While John Stones is equally good in possession, the 25-year-old has not yet developed Alderweireld's defensive nous, which should come with age and experience.
CB - Aymeric Laporte
Undoubtedly City's classiest centre-back, Aymeric Laporte combines excellent passing with solid defending, and even proved himself to be a threat in the opposition box last season.
Jan Vertonghen finds himself unlucky to miss out having been a consistently quality defender throughout his time at Spurs, and is edged out by the Frenchman due to City's superior defensive record in recent years.
LB - Danny Rose
With Benjamin Mendy injured and therefore unavailable for Saturday's game, the left-back spot is narrowed down to either Danny Rose or Oleksandr Zinchenko, a tough choice that the Englishman edges due to his experience and ability in both boxes.
Both players possess class in possession but Rose is more steady defensively, with Zinchenko unproven at full-back outside of Guardiola's specific system and style of play.
DM - Rodri
While Spurs new boy Ndombele is more of a box-to-box midfielder, Rodri is very much a holder who can protect the defence while the attacking talents in this combined XI flourish.
Fernandinho has been a fantastic servant to Man City, but Rodri is younger and more mobile, while being no less accomplished on the ball as the Brazilian.
CM - Kevin De Bruyne
Having been plagued with injuries last season, Kevin De Bruyne is back and doesn't look far from his best. The Belgian is an assist king, providing 34 in the league between 2016 and 2018, and got off the mark last weekend with a nicely weighted pass for Sterling to slot past Lukasz Fabianski.
In truth, an in-form De Bruyne has very little competition in any team, and is one of the first names on my team sheet.
CM - Christian Eriksen
It feels blasphemous to leave out David Silva but, despite remaining a quality player at 33, the Spaniard is not in his prime any longer, while Christian Eriksen is pivotal for this Spurs side, demonstrating his importance once again with a stunning cameo performance off the bench against Aston Villa, turning the game in the home side's favour.
Eriksen is an expert provider of chances, the only player, alongside David Beckham, to record ten or more assists in four successive Premier League seasons in fact!
RW - Bernardo Silva
With Son Heung-min suspended and Leroy Sane injured, the right-wing position picks itself, with the skilful yet hard-working Bernardo Silva a shoe-in. The Portuguese international is easy on the eye, with dazzling footwork and a sweet left foot.
Riyad Mahrez starred against West Ham with a classy display but the Algerian is more inconsistent than Bernardo, who you can expect to put in a good performance week-in week-out, while Lucas Moura similarly suffers from dips in form.
ST - Harry Kane
By far the most difficult decision and a debate that splits opinion, Harry Kane pips Sergio Aguero to the centre forward role. The Argentine is the most prolific player in Premier League history and has won countless trophies for City, contributing heavily towards many, most memorably the 2012 league title with a last-gasp winner against QPR.
However, Kane is a legendary player in his own right and we fully expect him to outscore Aguero this season, with a full pre-season behind the Englishman for the first time in years.
LW - Raheem Sterling
On the other hand, Raheem Sterling is the easiest pick of the bunch. The former Liverpool man is the most important attacker in the best team in the league, improving dramatically in the past couple of seasons even in spite of breaking onto the scene as a dangerous player at just 17.
Opening his account with a hat-trick last weekend, Sterling's numbers are becoming scary - scoring 35 and assisting 21 in the league over the last two seasons - and there's no reason to believe they won't improve even further.
Source : 90min