Manchester City players will wear special shirts in the game against Arsenal on Wednesday to promote the launch of a charity initiative by the club’s parent company City Football Group (CFG).

The Cityzens will play the Gunners in a rescheduled fixture that will mark the return of the English Premier League following a three-month coronavirus break.

Players will put on jerseys with a ‘Cityzens Giving for Recovery’ campaign logo instead of their usual partners Etihad Airways.

CFG chief executive Ferran Soriano said: “Frontline workers around the world have heroically responded to the immediate threat of COVID-19. We have been privileged to play our own small part in helping to address that immediate threat.

“Now is the time for us to look forward, committing to meeting our responsibility to help our communities recover.

“This multi-faceted campaign is going to use our expertise, our facilities, our platform and our voice to help people and our communities to heal and recover. And we will do it together. We are calling on our global community of Cityzens to help us to give and to help as many people as we can to recover.”

CFG which owns eight other football teams – has already made almost £1m (US$ 1,3m)in donations in the last three months and wants to match that over the next 12 months through its clubs, staff, players, coaches and fans.