Sporting CP and Manchester City will aim to continue the unbeaten start to their UEFA Champions League campaigns when they clash at the Jose Alvalade Stadium on Tuesday.
The 2024/25 UEFA Champions League returns with Matchday 4 of the first phase. Sporting CP vs Manchester City will be one of the most eye-catching fixtures this week, with the match having some intriguing undertones.
While Sporting CP and Manchester City are unbeaten in this season’s UEFA Champions League, they are the defending champions in their domestic top flights. In addition, Tuesday’s match pits two managers who will soon lock horns in the Manchester Derby, as Ruben Amorim will take over the new Manchester United manager in a week.
Sporting CP fans and players will be disgruntled about what could have been under Amorim this season, considering they have a perfect record in the Primeira Liga while being unbeaten in the UEFA Champions League. The Lions are scoring goals for fun, and Amorim could have enjoyed another trophy-laden season with the Portuguese champions.
Manchester City and Sporting CP are level on points in the Champions League, with the former ahead in the standings due to goal difference. However, Pep Guardiola’s men come into the midweek European fixture on the back of a shock 2-1 defeat to Bournemouth in the Premier League, a result that allowed Liverpool to return to the summit of the standings.
The first meeting between Sporting CP and Manchester City ended in a win for the former before the Premier League heavyweights embarked on a three-game unbeaten run. The Hard Tackle takes a closer look at the encounter ahead of the latest meeting between the two sides.
Team News & Tactics
Sporting CP
Ruben Amorim does not have many injury concerns hampering his preparations ahead of his side’s latest fixture. The Sporting CP manager will be without only one first-team player vs Manchester City on Tuesday, with Eduardo Quaresma recovering from a muscle injury.
Franco Israel should take his spot between the sticks, with Sporting CP lining up in a 3-4-3 formation in front of him vs Manchester City on Tuesday. The central defensive unit should feature Zeno Debast, Ousmane Diomande, and Goncalo Inacio.
Geovany Quenda and Maximiliano Araujo should be the two wing-backs, with the duo taking the creative charge from the flanks. The duo will flank the two midfielders, with Daniel Braganca and Morten Hjulmand pairing up in the middle of the park.
Viktor Gyokeres will lead the line for Sporting CP against Manchester City, with the Swedish international looking to continue his incredible scoring run. Finally, Pedro Goncalves and Francisco Trincao will complete the numbers in the offensive trifecta.
Probable Lineup (3-4-3): Israel; Debast, Diomande, Inacio; Quenda, Braganca, Hjulmand, Araujo; Trincao, Gyokeres, Goncalves
Manchester City
Unlike his counterpart in the Sporting CP dugout, Pep Guardiola has new issues to worry about ahead of the trip to Estadio Jose Alvalade. The Manchester City manager might be without four first-team players on Tuesday.
John Stones and Ruben Dias are the latest absentees, with the duo recovering from knocks they picked up this past weekend against Bournemouth. In addition, Jack Grealish will not return until after the international break, while Rodri (ACL) is the long-term absentee.
Ederson Moraes is the automatic pick between the sticks, with Manchester City lining up in a 4-1-4-1 formation in front of him vs Sporting CP on Tuesday. The backline should feature Rico Lewis, Manuel Akanji, Nathan Ake, and Josko Gvardiol.
As for the midfield unit, Mateo Kovacic will play the anchor role, with Ilkay Gundogan and the resurgent Matheus Nunes reprising more advanced roles in the central areas. Bernardo Silva and Jeremy Doku should be the two wide attackers, with Erling Haaland spearheading the Manchester City attack against Sporting CP.
Probable Lineup (4-1-4-1): Ederson; Lewis, Akanji, Ake, Gvardiol; Kovacic; Silva, Gundogan, Nunes, Doku; Haaland
Key Stats
- Sporting CP won their first European meeting vs Manchester City in March 2012 in the UEFA Europa League. However, they are winless in their last three against them (D1 L2).
- Manchester City have lost just one of their ten major European games against Portuguese opposition (W6 D3), although that was vs Sporting CP in March 2012. In those matches, the Citizens have kept six clean sheets, including one in each of their last three. The Premier League champions have only lost one of their previous five away trips to face Portuguese opponents in European competition (W2 D2). In addition, they are unbeaten there in UEFA Champions League matches: 0-0 vs FC Porto in December 2020 and 5-0 vs Sporting CP in February 2022.
- After losing their first five matches against English clubs in the UEFA Champions League, Sporting CP have gone unbeaten in the last three (W1 D2). They won their most recent home match in the competition against an English opponent, beating Tottenham Hotspur 2-0 in September 2022.
- Sporting CP are unbeaten in the UEFA Champions League this season (W2 D1). Another result without a defeat on Tuesday will see them equal their longest-ever unbeaten run in the European Cup/Champions League (four games between September 1982 and March 1983).
- Erling Haaland has been directly involved in 49 goals in 42 appearances in the UEFA Champions League (44 goals, five assists). If he scores or assists here, the Norwegian will become the fastest player to have 50 combined goals and assists in the competition’s history (43), overtaking Ruud van Nistelrooy for the fewest appearances to do so (45).
Player to Watch
Viktor Gyokeres
We have already spoken about the intriguing undertones of Sporting CP vs Manchester City on Tuesday. The game will also pit two of the most prolific strikers in Europe against each other, with Viktor Gyokeres and Erling Haaland taking the field this midweek. We have picked the former as our Player to Watch.
Gyokeres has been directly involved in 10 goals in 12 appearances for Sporting CP in European competition (seven goals, three assists) while scoring in all four of his European starts at Estadio Jose Alvalade (four goals). Expect the Swedish goal machine to continue his exceptional run on Tuesday.
Prediction
Sporting CP 2-2 Manchester City
Ruben Amorim will get an early preview of what he can expect from the Manchester Derby next month. However, the Portuguese tactician remains focused on Sporting CP, hoping to depart from the Jose Alvalade Stadium with his team’s unbeaten record intact in the Primeira Liga and the UEFA Champions League.
Manchester City will give no inch, although the Premier League champions have holes at the back that Amorim’s team can exploit. However, Pep Guardiola’s men have been prolific in Europe this season and should breach Franco Israel’s goal multiple times. Ultimately, there might not be much to separate the two sides, and The Hard Tackle predicts a 2-2 draw.