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Match of the day in Champions League. These two teams are set to advance together to the knockout stage baring some unforeseen upset. Both won their openers 3-0. CSKA Moscow and Vikoria Plzen are one level below City and Bayern, so this game does not inflict too big of a pressure on today`s opponents in terms of qualifying further. Nevertheless, both want a win in order to avoid eventual surprises and get an edge in the fight for the first place.
City has been pretty good so far under Pellegrini, but it is obvious that there`s still work to do. Currently on 7th place in the Premier League, the hosts boost the best offense in England with 14 goals in 6 matches. At the same time, they conceded 7. City is playing very offensive football this season, which is not surprising given their squad profile and their manager, Pellegrini being a fan of attractive soccer. The citizens just lost 2-3 at Aston Villa over the weekend.
Bayern is also trying to adapt to Guardiola’s playing style, and they seem to be on an upwards trend, being tied for points with Dortmund at the moment in Bundesliga, winning 19 out of 21 possible points. Bayern looks very safe at the back right now, conceding just 2 goals, but the truth is against every solid opponent they met, they showed weaknesses in defense. Dortmund scored 4 goals against them in the Supercup and Chelsea scored 2 in the European Supercup (120 minutes). The offensive line works great for Guardiola`s team, they beat Schalke 4-0 away 2 weeks ago.
Team news & lineups
Not too many squad problems for the two teams, City misses Demichelis, Bayern will have to do without Thiago Alcantara and Javi Martinez. Gotze will probably be on the bench.
Man City: Hart – Clichy, Kompany, Nastasic, Zabaleta – Fernandinho, Toure, Navas, Nasri – Negredo, Aguero
Bayern: Neuer – Alaba, Dante, Boateng, Rafinha – Lahm – Ribery, Schweinsteiger, Kroos, Robben – Mandzukic
City has 4 overs in the last 4 games, Bayern has 3 overs in the last 4 games.
The stats are not lying, both these teams are offensive minded and like to play fast paced, direct football. Bayern is a little more passive and less direct, passing the ball more, but they still have that sharpness they had last season in front of goal. If City had Mancini on the bench maybe you could have predicted this to end in a nice 1-1 draw or 0-1 win for Bayern, but with Pellegrini and City`s very poor defense it’s hard to see anything else then an over here. If you look at how Manchester is playing and how hesitant they are at the back, Bayern is set to score at least 1-2 goals here, while the english have the required class in attack to do the same. Direct football, superb quality up front and the fact that neither team is pressured to get a certain result should get us a free-flowing game and a winning bet here. My pick is 2-2.
Pick: over 2,5 goals
Odds: 1.78 @ Pinnacle
Stake: 9
Possible profit: 7.02
Event date: 2 October
Editor Facts
- Rostick is 2 for 2 in October
