This is by far the best opportunity that Manchester City has ever had to lift “ol big ears.” Not only has City never previously won the UEFA Champions League tournament, they haven’t even reached the final.
The high water mark for them was 2016, when they reached the semi-finals. However, as manager Pep Guardiola has made it abundantly clear, multiple times, they’re in it to win it now. They take on Lyon, the side with the longest odds of winning it all, on Saturday, so let’s preview.
This will be the third straight quarterfinal appearance for City, who continue on has favorites to win the big prize in the end. However, they’ll still be without the services of their all-time leading scorer, Sergio Aguero, who won’t be healed up in time for this one.
He could be back next week though if City progress to the semis. The good news is that Benjamin Mendy is back from suspension. There are no other major unavailable players for Guardiola. On the flip side, Lyon were without Moussa Dembele for the second leg of the previous round, were they ousted Juventus.
He is expected to be ready to go in this one.
Manchester City vs Lyon Champions League Quarterfinal FYIs
Kickoff: 8pm Saturday July 15, Estadio Jose Alvalade, Lisbon, Portugal
Starting XI Predictions: go to this link
Odds: (-305) Manchester City (+750) Lyon (+450) Draw
outright winner (+220) Manchester City (+3500) Lyon
Form Guide (all competitions): Manchester City WWLWWW Lyon WWLLLL
Form Guide (UCL): Manchester City WDDWWW Lyon WWLLLL
Prediction: Manchester City 2, Lyon 0
Ederson has been dominant in certain stretches this season, and overall, he had a phenomenal campaign in the league. Look for him to register a clean sheet here.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net, which is partnered with News Now. Banks, the author of “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry,” regularly contributes to WGN TV, Sports Illustrated, Chicago Now and SB Nation.
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