Manchester City face Bayern Munich in the Champions League quarter finals for only the 7th time in their history. The last time these two sides met was in the 2014/15 season. The head to heads remain even between the two sides with 3 wins each. Man City have never faced Bayern Munich in the knockout stages, the 6 previous meetings having come in the group stages.
Bayern Munich shocked the world only 2 weeks ago when they sacked manager Julian Nagelsmann. At the time, the German champions were sat just one point behind rivals Borussia Dortmund and had a Champions League quarter final against Man City to look forward to, having just knocked out PSG. Having had a 72% win ratio as Bayern manager, this shows how ruthless Bayern Munich are as they were quick to appoint former Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel.
Tuchel’s Chelsea of course, broke Man City hearts two years ago when Chelsea pipped City in the Champions League final in what was a narrow 1-0 win. Since taking the Bayern job, the Bavarians have beaten Dortmund 4-2 to overtake them in the league, before a shock cup exit as they were knocked out of the DFP-Pokal by Freiburg. However, in their most recent game, they faced Freiburg again in the Bundesliga but this time they ran out 1-0 winners.
Manchester City have been in fine form recently, beating Leipzig 7-0 in the Champions League, Burnley 6-0 in the Fa Cup, before beating Liverpool and Southampton 4-1 in the Premier League respectively. City manager Pep Guardiola will be looking to overcome Bayern, the club he previously managed.
Match Details
Location: Manchester, England
Venue: Etihad Stadium
Date: Tuesday, 11th April 2023
Time: 8pm BST (20:00)
Referee: Jesús Gil Manzano
Champions League form:
- Man City: W D D W D W
- Bayern Munich: W W W W W W
Form (all competitions):
- Man City: W W W W W W
- Bayern Munich: W W L W L W
Predicted Lineups
Since Man City have found a rich vein of form, they have remained relatively unchanged, and this will probably be the same against Bayern Munich. Bernardo Silva may come in for Riyad Mahrez however, since the Portuguese midfielder has been frequently used in these Champions League matches. A new role for John Stones may be used too as in recent weeks, he has drifted in midfield to create a back three of Nathan Ake, Ruben Dias and Manuel Akanji, with John Stones and Rodri sitting in midfield.
As for the away side, Tuchel will take his Bayern side to Manchester without a fit natural centre forward, as Eric-Maxim Choupo-Moting is set to miss out with a knee problem. With Leon Goretzka expected to come back into the side after being rested against Freiburg,Jamal Musiala may move further forward with Muller being utilised up top.
Manchester City possible starting lineup:
Ederson; Akanji, Ruben Dias, Ake; Stones, Rodri, Bernardo Silva, De Bruyne, Gundogan, Grealish; Haaland
Bayern Munich possible starting lineup:
Sommer; Pavard, De Ligt, Upamecano, Davies; Goretzka, Kimmich, Sane, Musiala, Coman; Muller
While being near-faultless in Europe, both sides have struggled in defending their respective domestic titles this season. Both these teams are elite serial winners and this one is a very tough one to predict. Man City will certainly want to take a lead back to the Allianz Arena in Munich for the second leg, as they look to break their Champions League curse and seek their first European title. As for Bayern Munich, they are on the hunt for their 7th Champions League trophy. Two sides that ooze class, entertainment and quality. A thrilling match in store.
Score prediction – Manchester City 2-1 Bayern Munich
The Football Report 
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