Simon Dalton presents his prediction for the Champions League match.
Before departing for Manchester United's base, Rúben Amorim's final top-tier clash as Sporting’s head coach will be the fixture against Manchester City. The Lisbon side welcomes the Manchester team amid a slump in their performance, with the visitors suffering two consecutive defeats last week.
Sporting
Sporting have been in sensational form, securing 14 victories out of their last 15 matches, with their sole draw coming from an away game against PSV Eindhoven (1:1). As in their domestic campaign, Sporting are spearheaded in the Champions League by their Swedish forward, Viktor Gyökeres, who has already netted twice in this European competition. On Friday, the team dismantled Estoril (5:1), where Gyökeres completed a hat-trick by halftime, while Sporting recorded an impressive 3.26 xG and fired off 20 shots in total over 90 minutes.
Manchester City
Since their thrilling encounter against Arsenal (2:2), Manchester City have had over 2.5 goals in eight of their last 10 matches across all competitions. Last week, they were eliminated from the League Cup by Tottenham Hotspur and were then defeated by Bournemouth in the Premier League (both games ended 1:2). However, collectively, Manchester City took 35 shots across both fixtures, proving their attack remains a significant threat. Their commanding triumph over Sparta Prague (5:0) in the previous Champions League round demonstrated that Manchester City are formidable even without Rodri Hernández and Kevin De Bruyne.
Sporting vs Manchester City Prediction
Back in February 2022, Sporting had a dismal showing against Manchester City at the Estádio José Alvalade (0:5). The Lisbon side are now prepared to offer stern resistance, and an over 2.5 goals outcome is likely.
