MY ACCOUNT
Manchester City have taken 10 points from their four Champions League assignments in Group G and will be looking to seal their place as group winners with a draw or victory at Borussia Dortmund.
The Citizens have already qualified for the last 16 and will be confirmed in top spot if they avoid defeat.
Dortmund will go through too if they win, or if they draw and FC Copenhagen do not beat Sevilla in the other game, or regardless if spoils are shared in Andalucia.
City’s goalscoring sensation Erling Haaland struck a late winner against his former employers Borussia Dortmund at the Etihad in September and the Norwegian will be hoping for a happy homecoming on his return to Signal Iduna Park.
Rising star Jude Bellingham had given Dortmund the lead in Manchester but a dramatic final 10 minutes saw his England team-mate John Stones level matters before Haaland completed the turnaround.
Both Dortmund and the Premier League champions were held to a point on Matchday 4. The German hosts were frustrated in a 1-1 draw at home to Sevilla while 10-man City played out a goalless stalemate with Copenhagen.
Team news
England duo Kyle Walker and Kalvin Phillips face a race against time to recover in time for the World Cup and remain sidelined for City, although Stones is back in contention after featuring on the bench in Saturday’s 3-1 win at home to Brighton.
Pep Guardiola’s defence is also weakened by the suspension to Sergio Gomez after his red card in Copenhagen. Otherwise, the City boss has a full strength squad to choose from.
Dortmund have a few more injury concerns to contend with as they remain without Sebastien Haller, Mahmoud Dahoud and Jamie Bynoe-Gittens.
Salih Ozcan is suspended and Thomas Meunier looks like missing out after being ruled out of Saturday’s 5-0 rout of Stuttgart. There are also question marks over the fitness of Marco Reus and Donyell Malen.
The stats
Manchester City responded to their 1-0 defeat at Liverpool by beating Brighton 3-1 on Saturday and Haaland was back among the goals with a brace.
Remarkably, Haaland now has 17 goals in just 11 Premier League games and he has also netted five times in just three Champions League appearances, including the winner against Dortmund at the Etihad last month.
The 22-year-old will be hungry for more against his former club, but another player full of confidence is Dortmund’s midfield maestro Bellingham.
The England starlet has scored in all four of Dortmund’s Champions League games this season, giving the Germans the lead in Manchester, and has eight goals this term.
That includes netting three times across his last two games against Hannover in the DFB-Pokal and Stuttgart in the Bundesliga, so he may be looking to showcase his goalscoring talents again.
Manchester City have won 11 of their 15 games in all competitions this season and it is worth noting they have played Dortmund three times in the Champions League in just over the last year, prevailing 2-1 on every occasion.
Prediction
Manchester City left it late but they got the better of Dortmund for the third time in the last three seasons with their 2-1 win at the Etihad in September.
Guardiola will want to secure top spot with a game to spare, in order to focus on their Premier League title challenge, and will be determined to get the job done at Signal Iduna Park.
However, Dortmund pack a punch going forward and have scored in all eight competitive home games this term so should get on the scoresheet.
The German hosts have failed to beat Premier League opponents in their last nine attempts, though.
A Citizens victory is 4/7 with LiveScore Bet but for more value back Manchester City to win and both teams to score, which is 7/5.
Bellingham is 13/2 with LiveScore Bet to get on the scoresheet after netting in all four Champions League group games this season, while he has also struck first in his last two starts against City.
