Manchester City welcome Bayern Munich to the Etihad Stadium for the first leg of their UEFA Champions League quarter-final showdown on Tuesday.
Pep Guardiola will surely be eager to get one over on his former club, having managed Bayern Munich between 2013 and 2016.
Our deadly duo! 🔥 pic.twitter.com/3pk2lLTFpP— Manchester City (@ManCity) April 9, 2023
Our deadly duo! 🔥 pic.twitter.com/3pk2lLTFpP
Can the reigning Premier League champions gain a first-leg advantage? Or will the perennial Bundesliga victors spoil the party? It’s time to take a closer look at both sides.
Let’s start with the hosts, Manchester City, who thrashed Southampton 4-1 last time out to pick up their seventh victory in eight matches across all competitions.
The Cityzens have also been extremely strong on home soil in recent times, winning each of their previous nine clashes at the Etihad.
Man City kicked off their Champions League campaign with an unbeaten group-stage campaign, taking 14 points from a possible 18 to finish atop Group G.
Having dispatched RB Leipzig 8-1 on aggregate in the previous round – winning 7-0 in the second leg – City look ready to end their wait for UCL glory this year.
As for Bayern Munich, they claimed six straight wins during the group stage, scoring 18 goals while conceding just two along the way.
The German giants then knocked out Paris Saint-Germain in the round of 16, winning 1-0 in France before winning 2-0 at the Allianz Arena.
Bayern head into Tuesday’s clash on the back of a 1-0 victory over Freiburg, which come after a 4-2 thrashing of Bundesliga title rivals Borussia Dortmund.
Having won 11 of their last 14 away games in all competitions, Thomas Tuchel’s side will fancy their chances of causing a stir in Manchester.
Head-to-head: Man City and Bayern Munich have faced each other six times in the Champions League, with both sides winning on three occasions.
However, this is the first knockout meeting between the two clubs, at they met during the group stage in 2011-12, 2013-14 and 2014-15.
Team news: Phil Foden is Manchester City’s only absentee as the England international continues to recover from appendix surgery.
Bayern Munich are still without long-term absentees Manuel Neuer and Lucas Hernandez, while Eric Choupo-Moting is also out injured out.
Of course, Man City will be looking to lay down a mark on home soil. But Bayern will be confident of frustrating the hosts.
Forebet predicts that Manchester City and Bayern Munich will play out an entertaining draw on Tuesday, with both teams scoring over 1.5 goals.