Manchester City take on Ukrainian outfit Dynamo Kiev on Wednesday, hoping to halt their recent run of defeats and stamp their authority in this Champions League Round of 16 tie.
The pressure on Manuel Pellegrini and his Manchester City side has never been higher, with the Citizens facing opponents inferior to them for the first time at this stage of the competition. Particularly after suffering a humiliating defeat at the hands of Chelsea last weekend, City will want to bounce back strongly and put themselves in the driver’s position going into the second leg.
Meanwhile, Dynamo Kiev have not played a single competitive game since December 9, when they beat Maccabi Tel Aviv in their final Champions League group stage fixture. However, manager Sergei Rebrov is confident his team will be ready for Manchester City, and has already identified some weaknesses in Pellegrini’s team for his side to exploit.
Lineups
Dynamo Kiev
Possible starting XI (4-5-1): Shovkovskiy (C); Danilo Silva, Khacheridi, Dragovic, Vida; Rybalka, Garmash, Buyalskiy, González, Yarmolenko; Júnior Moraes
Manchester City
Possible starting XI (4-3-3): Hart; Zabaleta, Kompany (C), Otamendi, Clichy; Fernando, Fernandinho, Touré; Silva, Sterling, Agüero
Match Stats
- Dynamo Kiev have won their last six competitive matches in all competitions, keeping a clean sheet in all but one of them.
- Manchester City, meanwhile, have lost their last three games in all competitions, conceding 10 goals in the process.
- The Ukrainian side have lost just two of their last 13 home meetings against the English side in all competitions.
- Manchester City were defeated in their last meeting against Kiev, losing 2-1 on aggregate in the 2010/2011 Europa League.
- City will qualify for the quarter-finals of the Champions League for the first time in their history if they get past Dynamo Kiev.
Prediction
Dynamo Kiev 1 – 1 Manchester City
Manchester City have not been in good form of late, and despite the rest Pellegrini gave his key players, playing in Ukraine is always a difficult prospect. City have enough quality in their front players to score, but they are unlikely to register a win away from home. A score draw is likely in the first leg of this Champions League Round of 16 tie.
Odds (bet365)
Dynamo Kiev: 3.60
Draw: 3.40
Manchester City: 2.20