A run of four consecutive games without a win, including three defeats, has pushed Manchester City out of the top 24 - the group with a place in the Champions League. However, the Premier League representative still has the right to decide. If they defeat Club Brugge (Belgium) in the match taking place at 3am on January 30, coach Pep Guardiola's team will not be eliminated early.
Man City vs Club Brugge Prediction
Man City did not concede any goals in their first 3 matches in the Champions League this season. However, in the next 4 matches, coach Pep Guardiola's team received 13 goals (an average of more than 3 goals/match).
A weak defense is the main reason why Man City struggled in the last two months of 2024. Any opponent can score against the Etihad team when unbelievable mistakes appear continuously.
The high form of the strikers, especially Phil Foden, helped Man City make up for the mistakes in defense.
Coach Guardiola's latest patchwork plan has not been effective. New signing Abdukodir Khusanov just had a "disastrous" debut in Man City's shirt with 1 mistake leading to a goal and a series of clumsy handling.
Fortunately for Man City, their attack has recently started to improve in efficiency to make up for the goals conceded. The return of Kevin De Bruyne, the excellent form of Phil Foden (6 goals, 2 assists in the last 5 appearances) has helped Man City end the crisis in the domestic arena.
The Etihad team needs to maintain that in the match that decides their place in the Champions League. Man City only need to win by any score. Coach Guardiola's team is capable of doing that at home, as long as they do not make mistakes and lose.
Expected lineup
Man City's long-term injured players Oscar Bobb, Rodri and Ruben Dias are still not back, while Nathan Ake and Jeremy Doku are also unavailable for this match.
Club Brugge are only missing one player for their trip to Man City. However, it is a big loss for the Belgian team as captain Hans Vanaken is ill and will definitely not be able to play.
Man City: Ederson; Lewis, Stones, Akanji, Gvardiol; Silva, Kovacic; Foden, De Bruyne, Savinho; Haaland.
Club Brugge: Mignolet; Sabbe, Mechele, Ordonez, De Cuyper; Jashari, Onyedika; Talbi, Vanaken, Tzolis; Nilsson.
Man City vs Club Brugge Prediction
Opta's supercomputer predicts Man City have a 76.2% chance of winning. Man City's recent attacking form has been very good (27 goals in the last 7 matches, an average of nearly 4 goals/match) and this is likely to be a high-scoring match.
Score prediction: Man City 2-0 Club Brugge.
Source: https://vtcnews.vn/nhan-dinh-man-city-vs-club-brugge-guardiola-thoat-hiem-ar923005.html
Comment (0)