Premier League giants Manchester City entertain Bundesliga outfit Borussia Monchengladbach in matchday 6 of the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday, 8 December.
On-paper, the hosts may look the better side, but one has to realise that M'gladbach come into the game at the back of a shock 3-1 win over German powerhouses Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga last weekend. Bayern lost their first game of the season on Saturday.
However, the battle at Etihad tonight can be expected to be a closely-contested one, as both teams are in some decent form this season. Man City and M'gladbach both remain third in their respective domestic leagues. The Champions League is a different ball game altogether.
The Citizens have already made it to the round-of-16 of the European competition after getting a confirmed second place in Group D. Manuel Pellegrini's side will nevertheless play for all three points in an effort to top the group. Juventus currently lead the table with 11 points -- two points ahead of Man City.
The German side, meanwhile, will be looking for atleast a draw and a better goal difference to confirm third place in the group and also their UEFA Europa League berth this season. Juventus play rockbottom side Sevilla in the other game of the night.
Pellegrini's side recorded a shock 2-0 defeat against Stoke City in the Premier League this weekend, and that has got to hurt. Star striker Sergio Aguero looks doubtful for tonight's game, but the Chilean coach isn't too much concerned about the result of the game. "If you don't finish at the top of the group, I don't think it is disappointing.
"We [had] to play twice against Juventus, who are the best team in the group. I don't think we always have to be pessimistic about the draw," Pellegrini explained.
For Borussia Monchengladbach, tonight's result does matter as they look to continue their sojourn in the European competition this season. "We definitely want to continue our European adventure. We will be up against a very, very strong opponent, but we will do everything we can to achieve something on our terms," André Schubert, head coach, Mönchengladbach, said.
"We can take things from the Bayern game: mostly that we can mix it with the strongest teams in the world."
Man City vs Borussia M'gladbach is scheduled to kick-off from the Etihad Stadium at 8.45 pm CET (1.15 am IST, 7.45 pm GMT, 2.45 pm ET).
Possible starting XI
Man City: Hart; Sagna, Otamendi, Mangala, Clichy; Fernandinho, Delph, Touré, De Bruyne, Silva; Bony.
Borussia M'gladbach: Sommer; Elvedi, Christensen, Nordtveit; Korb, Wendt, Xhaka, Dahoud, Johnson; Stindl, Raffael.
Where to watch the game
Viewers in India can catch the game on Ten HD, while the option of live streaming is available on tensports.com.
UK viewers can catch the game on BT Sport 2, while the online live stream option is on BT Sport Live. The BT Sport app will also show the match Live.
US viewers can catch the game on ESPN 3 USA and Fox Sports 2 with the option of live streaming on FoxSoccer2Go and Fox Sports Go.
People in Germany can catch the game on Sky Sport 2/HD and Sky Sport 3/HD. The online streaming is available on Sky Go Deutschland.
