Red Star Belgrade will host Manchester City in the UEFA Champions League on Wednesday, looking to pick up their first win of the group stage at home.
Red Star Belgrade are at the bottom of Group G with just one point from five Champions League games ahead of the clash with Manchester City at the Rajko Mitic Stadium.
Meanwhile, Manchester City have already secured their place in the Round of 16 of the UEFA Champions League, with five wins from five group games. They might look to rotate their squad and rest the key players ahead of the knockout rounds.
The visitors will progress as the group winners regardless of the result here, and they will look to extend their 100% win record in the group stages of the UEFA Champions League this season with a positive result here. The Hard Tackle takes a closer look at the encounter ahead of the latest meeting between the two sides.
Team News and Tactics
Red Star Belgrade
The home team do not have any injury or suspension issues heading into this contest and they will be able to field their full strength line up here. Omri Glazer will start in goal for the hosts as they line up in a 4-2-3-1 setup.
Stefan Mitrovic and Lazar Nikolic will start as the full-backs and they will look to contain the Manchester City wide players. Uros Spajic and Aleksandar Dragovic will start as the central defenders.
Hwang In-beom and Srdjan Mijailovic will start as the defensive midfielders, and they will look to sit deep and protect the home defence. Vladimir Lucic and Osman Bukari will add pace and flair during transitions from the wide areas.
They will look to create counter-attacking opportunities for the home side. Peter Olayinka will lead the line, with Aleksandar Katai behind him in the hole. They will look to link up in the final third and open up gaps in the Manchester City defence.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Glazer; Mitrovic, Spajic, Dragovic, Nikolic; Hwang, Mijailovic; Lucic, Katai, Bukari; Olayinka
Manchester City
The visitors will be without Kevin De Bruyne, who will return to action next month. Erling Haaland missed the last game for Manchester City with a foot injury, and he is unlikely to be risked here, especially with qualification to the knockout rounds secured. Jeremy Doku is in a similar situation, and the Belgian winger is unlikely to feature.
Manchester City are likely to shape up in a 4-2-3-1 formation, with Stefan Ortega in goal. Rico Lewis and Sergio Gomez are likely to be deployed as the full-backs here, and they will look to contribute at both ends of the pitch. Nathan Ake will start alongside Josko Gvardiol at the heart of the Manchester City defence.
In the middle of the park, Kalvin Phillips will start alongside Rodri. The two players will look to break up the opposition attacks and help Manchester City dominate proceedings in the middle of the park.
Jack Grealish and Phil Foden should be deployed in the wide areas. The two players will look to add creativity and unpredictability from the flanks. Bernardo Silva will start as the central attacking midfielder, and he will look to open up spaces for his teammates and create goal-scoring opportunities in the final third. Julian Alvarez will lead the line for Manchester City here.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Ortega; Lewis, Ake, Gvardiol, Gomez; Rodri, Phillips; Grealish, Silva, Foden; Alvarez
Key Stats
- Red Star Belgrade lost their only previous European meeting with Manchester City on Matchday 1 of this season’s UEFA Champions League.
- Red Star Belgrade have lost their last three UEFA Champions League games against English opponents.
- English teams have won on three of their last four major European visits to Red Star Belgrade.
- Red Star Belgrade lost their last UEFA Champions League home game 2-1 against RB Leipzig. They have not lost consecutive home matches in major European competition since November 2019.
- Manchester City have won all five of their UEFA Champions League group stage games this season. Liverpool were the only other English club to win all six group matches in a single campaign, back in 2021/22.
Player to Watch
Julian Alvarez
The 23-year-old Argentine international has four goals and an assist in just one Champions League start this season. Alvarez has been outstanding with his cameos so far, and he will be hoping to impress against Red Star Belgrade where he is expected to start.
The 2022 FIFA World Cup winner can cause all sorts of problems with his pace movement, trickery and his finishing ability. The home team have been quite disappointing defensively, conceding 11 goals in five group games. So, Alvarez will fancy his chances of getting on the scoresheet here.
Prediction
Red Star Belgrade 0-3 Manchester City
Manchester City are undoubtedly the better team here, and they are in reasonably good form compared to the home team heading into this game. Despite the injury problems, Manchester City have the strength in depth to field a strong side here and grind out all three points.
The 2023/24 treble winners have been formidable in the UEFA Champions League so far, and a comfortable away win is on the cards. The Hard Tackle predicts Pep Guardiola and his charges to clinch a 3-0 victory over Red Star Belgrade this midweek.
