The defending Premier League champions head to the Jan Breydel Stadion to take on the Group A surprise package Club Brugge, while Liverpool face Atletico Madrid in a blockbuster clash in Spain.
Manchester City got their Champions League campaign off to a flying start, courtesy of an overwhelming 6-3 victory over RB Leipzig at the Etihad Stadium. 토토 However, City’s early hype suffered an epic setback on Matchday 2 as Pep Guardiola’s side fell to a 2-0 loss against Paris Saint-Germain at the Parc des Princes. An eye-catching showdown, highlighted by Lionel Messi’s inaugural goal for PSG, inflicted the first Champions League defeat on Man City on foreign soil since August 2020. Barring that 3-1 reverse against Lyon in neutral Portugal in the competition’s quarter-finals, the Cityzens last lost an away Champions League game in April 2019, succumbing to a 1-0 loss to Tottenham.
Guardiola has lost back-to-back away fixtures in Europe’s most prestigious club competition just once during his illustrious managerial career. Although Club Brugge held PSG to an unexpected 1-1 draw in their group stage opener and went on to beat Leipzig 2-1 on hostile turf last time out, their underdog status in this encounter is justified.
The Belgians have failed to win any of their last 12 European match-ups against English opponents (D3, L9) since outplaying Chelsea 1-0 in the Cup Winners’ Cup in February 1995. This is a prime opportunity for Man City to improve their recent disappointing defensive record in the Champions League.
Since going seven straight Champions League matches without conceding, the reigning Premier League champions have kept just a single clean sheet across their last seven outings in the competition. With one point separating the top three sides in this group going into this matchday, a victory here could prove decisive to City’s hopes of reaching the knockout stage for the ninth season running.