Manchester City to prevail against RB Leipzig
Of the four UEFA Champions League matchups this week, Man City versus RB Leipzig is the most evenly poised heading into the second leg of their round of 16 clash, following their 1-1 draw last month.
Marco Rose must be sick of the sight of Manchester City in the UEFA Champions League knockout stages. This will be his fourth-such match in the competition, with the previous three all coming against City. He was formerly in charge of Borussia Mönchengladbach when they were eliminated by the club in the last 16 in 2020-21.
His hopes of success this time around won’t be helped by the injury sustained by Christopher Nkunku. The French forward has scored 10 goals across this last 12 starts in the competition, including a hat-trick the last time the two sides faced off at the Etihad Stadium in September 2021. Whether he will be able to shake off the thigh injury that kept him out of the weekend’s action is looking less and less likely.
Meanwhile, Erling Haaland will be hoping to build upon the home form in the Champions League that has made him such a threat. He’s scored 17 goals in 11 home matches, scoring at least two goals in seven of them with an average strike rate of a goal every 49 minutes.
And one issue for Leipzig is that England hasn’t proved a welcome trip for them in recent times. Their last three such away games in the competition have resulted in defeats and resounding ones at that, conceding 13 goals in the process.
However, home advantage and injuries to integral Leipzig players will no doubt work in the Citizens’ favour, and while patience may be the name of the game Guardiola’s men should prevail by a narrow margin to keep their Champions League fantasy alive.
Credit: theanalyst.com
Porto, Inter Milan play out second leg of their last-16 tie
Deciding who takes a place in the Champions League quarter-finals, Porto and Inter Milan play out the second leg of their last-16 tie on Tuesday, at Estadio do Dragao.
The teams’ opening bout in Italy ended with Inter taking the slimmest of advantages, but they have since continued some inconsistent form while their hosts are now back in the habit of winning.
A frustrating night at San Siro resulted in defeat for Porto last month, with Inter substitute Romelu Lukaku scoring the only goal as Sergio Conceicao‘s 10-man side lost the first game of their latest adventure in the Champions League knockout stage. Defying his recent fortunes in front of goal, Lukaku converted the rebound after hitting the post with 85 minutes on the clock.
Having won the first leg for only the second time in their last 10 attempts at this stage, the Italian giants will aim to continue a trend of finishing the job in Europe’s premier club competition: they have won four of their last seven away games in the elimination stage, with all four coming in second legs.
Even if Porto have suffered a couple of slip-ups recently, Inter’s defensive woes and troubles on the road are major issues ahead of this second-leg decider. The home side can produce goals from several sources, but as they trail before kickoff it could take extra time and penalties to finally get over the line.
Credit: sportsmole.co.uk
Guardiola’s era will be judged by Champions League success
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola says his reign will “absolutely” be judged on whether he leads the club to a first Champions League title, although he “doesn’t agree” with it.
City have won nine major trophies since Guardiola took charge in 2016.
But he was asked whether his spell will be defined by success in Europe’s premier cup competition.
“It doesn’t mean I agree with it but, absolutely, I’ll be judged on that,” said the 52-year-old Spaniard.
“Before my first game in the Champions League [with City], people said I was here to win it.
“I said ‘what?’ I don’t know, but I accept it. As much as I go through, it’s not going to change.”
City will secure a place in this season’s quarter-finals if they win their last-16 second leg at home to RB Leipzig on Tuesday.
The closest they have come to Champions League glory was when they reached the 2021 final, where they lost 1-0 to Chelsea.
A late fightback by Real Madrid prevented City returning to the final last season, but in Guardiola’s first four seasons at Etihad Stadium they failed to progress past the quarter-finals.
City were upset by French sides Monaco and Lyon, while suffering agonising exits against Premier League rivals Liverpool and Tottenham, with the latter coming after VAR played a big role in the outcome of a thrilling second leg at the Etihad.
In November, Guardiola, who won the Champions League twice as Barcelona coach, signed a two-year contract extension to 2025 and said he wanted “to stay and continue fighting for trophies”.
“We’ve not won it but we’ve done really well in the Champions League,” said City midfielder Kevin de Bruyne.
“I know people base everything on only winning but I feel there’s been a lot of circumstances in these kind of games – the Madrid game, the Tottenham game where we deserved to go through but didn’t. These are moments in games where these things happen.
“Obviously I want to win it but I know that, as long as we don’t, I’ll come here and get the same questions and I’m fine because people judge you on that.
“We just try to win these games and be the best people and team we can be.”
Credit: bbc.com
