Wednesday, March 18, 2015

Barcelona vs. Manchester City Preview

Manchester City travel to the Camp Nou in the last 16 of the Champions League knowing that they must score at least two goals to progress past Barcelona into the quarter-final stages.

A brace from Luis Suarez gave Luis Enrique's men the advantage after the first leg at the Etihad, with Sergio Aguero grabbing a lifeline with a solitary effort to leave Manuel Pellegrini hoping for something special in Catalonia.

The Chilean boss goes into this fixture under increasing pressure following his side's recent dismal showing in the Premier League. Problems for the Sky Blues were highlighted on Saturday evening when they were undone by Burnley, who grabbed a 1-0 victory at Turf Moor.

The current league champions were fairly impressive in February until they fell to Barcelona, which was then followed by a devastating loss to Liverpool at Anfield. As it stands, now only one point separates Pellegrini's men and a resurgent third-placed Arsenal.

City's coach goes into the game knowing that some fans would welcome a move away from the team's 4-4-2 system, which could potentially see both Samir Nasri and James Milner come back into the fold.

Things could not be more different for Barcelona as they have won all of their last six games across all competitions, with victories coming in La Liga, the Champions League and the Copa del Rey.

The Catalans currently lead the league table and claimed a comfortable 2-0 away win over Eibar at the weekend to build from an impressive 6-1 victory over Rayo Vallecano the week before.

Statistics show that Barca are clear favourites to progress on Wednesday, with Enrique's charges claiming five straight wins in the tournament. The Spanish side have also scored at least two goals in their last six games in the showpiece.

When observing head-to-head history, the La Liga outfit are dominant too. Barcelona have beaten City in every one of their last three matches, bagging at least two goals in each of those meetings.

City will most likely be boosted by the return of Yaya Toure from suspension, but they will be without the suspended Gael Clichy, who was sent off in the first leg in England. As mentioned, Milner and Nasri could return if Pellegrini decides to change from his much-criticised 4-4-2 setup.

As for Barcelona, Sergio Busquets and Thomas Vermaelen remain the only absentees. Wednesday's hosts could welcome back both Dani Alves and Jordi Alba, who sat out at the weekend due to league suspensions. Enrique also had the chance to rest Javier Mascherano, Andres Iniesta and Xavi against Eibar, and they could all feature against City.

Barcelona:

Form in Champions League: LWWWWW
Form in all competitions: LWWWWW

Possible starting lineup: Bravo; Montoya, Bartra, Pique, Adriano; Roberto, Rakitic, Rafinha; Messi, Suarez, Neymar

Manchester City:

Form in Champions League: DDLWWL
Form in all competitions: WWLLWL

Possible starting lineup: Hart; Zabaleta, Kompany, Mangala, Kolarov; Milner, Navas, Fernandinho, Toure, Silva; Aguero

Kick Off Time - 20:45HRS

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