MY ACCOUNT
– Bayern are 3-0 down in the tie and have lost three of their last six games
– Manchester City are flying, winning their last 10 and scoring 37 goals in that run
– Recommended bet: Manchester City and over 3.5 goals
Manchester City head into the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final clash with Bayern Munich holding a three-goal advantage and even the most Euro-scarred Citizens supporter will surely be feeling confident of progressing.
For all their success on the domestic front, continental glory has remained infuriatingly elusive for City fans, but Pep Guardiola’s team now looks better placed than ever to finally get their hands on the Champions League trophy.
Bayern represented a major obstacle in that quest when the draw was made but after the 3-0 rout at the Etihad Stadium, City now need only to avoid a total collapse in Munich to take a giant step closer to the greatest prize.
Team news
Bayern manager Thomas Tuchel has said that Sadio Mane will return after serving a club ban for a dressing room altercation with teammate Leroy Sane but fellow forward Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting is unlikely to start despite returning from a knee injury.
Goalkeeper Manuel Neuer is out with a broken leg, full-back Lucas Hernandez is absent with an ACL injury and young midfielder Paul Wanner remains unavailable.
Guardiola has a near fully-fit City squad to choose from, with Phil Foden the only player likely to miss out as he continues to recover from appendicitis, although he is now back in training.
The stats
Erling Haaland scored Manchester City’s third in the first-leg victory, meaning he has netted in five of his last seven matches against Bayern, hitting six goals in total in those meetings.
And that 3-0 success puts City in an extremely strong position to progress given their last defeat by more than two goals came in September 2020 – nearly 31 months ago.
Guardiola’s men also visit a Bayern side who have lost some of their fear factor, winning only two of their last six matches and losing three.
That run has seen them dumped out of the DFB-Pokal, cut their lead in the Bundesliga to two points and all-but confirmed their Champions League exit.
Five of the six matches in that damaging sequence of results have come under new head coach Tuchel, who has a poor record this season of five wins, two draws and five defeats while manager of both Chelsea and Bayern.
And while Bayern are stronger at the Allianz Arena than on the road – winning 13 of 19 home games – they have not won their last two in Munich, suffering a first home defeat of 2022-23 a fortnight ago to fifth-placed Freiburg in the cup.
Prediction
Bayern Munich have the history and European calibre to sow seeds of doubt but Guardiola should be hugely confident of progressing against his former club.
His men arrive on the back of a 10-match winning run in which they have scored an average of 3.7 goals per game and they have not conceded more than a single goal in their last 17 outings.
It is likely that hosts who must go for broke and have not failed to score all season in front of their own fans will test the City backline, making both teams to score a sensible addition to Bet Builders.
But a three-goal cushion should ensure no serious doubts creep in even if City concede first, and the visitors have more than enough quality to hurt a Bayern rearguard that has looked increasingly vulnerable in recent weeks and could become thoroughly exposed as the hosts chase parity.
Back Manchester City and over 3.5 goals, available at 17/4 with LiveScore Bet.
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