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Tijjani Reijnders and Rodri will start on the bench as Manchester City face Bournemouth at the Etihad Stadium . When Pep Guardiola was quizzed on his decision to bench Reijnders, he told Sky Sports: "He is not completely fit. Yesterday was the first training session so I decided to start him on the bench and we will see what happens during the game." On why Rodri is on the bench, Pep added: "It's the same case like Tijjani." The third change comes from Rayan Cherki, who makes his first start in the Premier League since Man City's 2-0 loss to Tottenham in late August. Regarding the Frenchman returning to the starting XI, Pep stated: "His quality, everybody knows it but he has been injured. Hopefully he can give us the talent we need up front to win games." If Man City are able to beat Bournemouth today, the Cherries will drop to third with Guardiola's team jumping up to second, five points away from Premier League leaders Arsenal. Bournemouth have had an impressive start to the season, with Andoni Iraola's side having lost just one league game before facing Man City today. When asked if facing the Cherries feels different this time around, Pep responded: "No, always they have been strong since Iraola is the manager. They are a really tough opponent and everybody knows it." He continued: "Absolutely [victory is important[. That's what we are going to play for and we are ready for it." Today's fixture marks the first of three home games in-a-row for Man City. They face Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League on Wednesday, followed by a fiery clash with Liverpool on Sunday. There will be more to follow. We'll bring you the very latest updates on this breaking news story. For the latest news and breaking news visit our Manchester City page . Get all the big headlines, pictures, analysis, opinion and video on the stories that matter to you. Follow us on Twitter @ManCityMEN - the MEN's City Twitter account - for all the latest football news as it happens in real-time. We're at facebook.com/ManCityMEN where we'll bring you breaking stories and images, plus you can chat with United fans around the world. We're also on Instagram here . And if you sign up to our free City newsletter here , we'll send all the latest headlines, reaction and features straight to your inbox, every day.
