Manchester City teenager Kaden Braithwaite will become the third-youngest player in the club’s 130-year history when he makes his first-team debut later on Tuesday evening.

Pep Guardiola is expected to name the 16-year-old defender as a starter for City’s third-round Carabao Cup clash with Watford after he impressed the City head coach in training.

The teenager is the youngest player to make his first-team debut under Guardiola, who has been in charge of the Etihad Stadium since 2016.

Glyn Pardoe holds the record for the club’s youngest ever player, having made his debut in 1962 aged 15 years and 341 days. Former City midfielder Paul Simpson was less than four months older than Braithwaite when he made his debut against Coventry City in 1982.

Braithwaite, who can play at right-back or centre-left, has started all four games for the club’s Under-18 side this season.

City, eight-time League Cup winners, are hoping to progress to the next round, having previously won the competition four times in a row (between 2016 and 2021).

City welcome Championship club Watford two days after they recorded a dramatic 2-2 draw with Premier League champions Arsenal on Sunday.

John Stones scored the equaliser eight minutes into injury time to take a point and keep the team top of the table after five games.

Versatility and size have caught Guardiola’s attention

Analysis by Sam Lee

Braithwaite signed for City at the usual under-9 stage after being picked up by the club’s youth academy, following in the footsteps of Phil Foden and Cole Palmer.

He can play in multiple positions, including centre-back, left-back and midfield. He is also taller than many other young players in City’s academy, something Guardiola noted during pre-season when he spoke about tall midfielder Nico O’Reilly, who will also start against Watford.

Last season he made his debut for the under-18 team. Last summer he was promoted to that age category and was already appointed vice-captain by coach Oliver Reiss.

(Carl Recine/Getty Images)