Wednesday draws the curtain on this season's UEFA Champions League group stage, with Manchester City, one of the favorites for the title, wrapping things up with an interesting showdown against Sevilla at the Etihad Stadium.
Guardiola's men enter this clash having achieved their ultimate goal in Europe at this stage: winning their group. The Premier League giants have booked their ticket to the round of 16 and will be one of eight seeded teams for the knockout stage after topping Group G ahead of Dortmund.
While only three points separate De Bruyne and Co. from the Bundesliga giants, City boast the superior head-to-head record, which is the tiebreaker in this competition, winning one and drawing the other in their two encounters with BVB.
The English champions' campaign has not been spotless, however. Out of their five games, Pep's side have won three, which is an amazing feat for many clubs but the elite Manchester City. Ideally, the continental powerhouse would have preferred to enter the round of 16 with a perfect record, a feat only Bayern Munich have achieved this season, but Dortmund and Copenhagen have frustrated the Premier League side in their last two UEFA Champions League fixtures.
Their last two games in this competition ended in nil-nil draws, and while Erling Haaland missed both those fixtures, Pep's side are blessed with enough quality to score in the absence of the Norwegian goalscoring machine.
Nonetheless, the home side have still lost only one game all season: the 1-0 defeat against Liverpool at the iconic Anfield stadium. However, the English giants have suffered four draws, two in Europe and two in the Premier League, with Newcastle and Aston Villa picking up a point each against Guardiola's men.
Additionally, their most recent outing was a 1-0 victory over Leicester, a game in which City struggled to break down the opposition. Had it not been for a world-class free-kick goal from De Bruyne, the Manchester side could have dropped points at the King Power Stadium as well. Can Sevilla pull off something similar?
The Spanish club have been in utter disarray this season and have even endured a managerial change less than halfway through the campaign. After their 4-1 defeat at home to Dortmund on Matchday 3, the board decided to sack then-head coach Julen Lopetegui, a decision which shocked no one as the team find themselves in a relegation battle in La Liga.
Los Palanganas have won only three games all season, two of which came in the Spanish top flight while the other was their 3-0 triumph over Copenhagen. Of those three victories, two came under the tutelage of newly-appointed boss Jorge Sampaoli, who succeeded Lopetegui at the Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán Stadium.
However, this does not mean all of their issues have been resolved under the Argentine tactician. While Sampaoli has helped his team enter the UEFA Europa League as the third-best side in their group, his first seven games in charge of Sevilla have produced two wins, three draws, and two defeats.
Nonetheless, Lamela and Co. head into their clash with Manchester City having won two out of their last five matches and going unbeaten in three of those five. This does not make their Etihad Stadium task any easier but it might just give the visitors some hope.
Team news
Man City: The hosts will once again be without Erling Haaland, who hasn't fully recovered from injury, but the club hope to have him back in time for their weekend clash with Fulham. Kyle Walker and Kalvin Phillips remain sidelined while Cole Palmer is a fitness doubt. Sergio Gomez, however, has completed his suspension and is available for selection.
Sevilla: Jesus Corona remains sidelined for the foreseeable future after suffering a leg break while Tanguy Nianzou and Youssef En-Nesyri are out due to thigh and hamstring injuries, respectively. Additionally, Fernando is ill and will thus miss the trip to his former club.
Key stats
-
This will be the fourth encounter between Man City and Sevilla in the UEFA Champions League.
-
The Cityzens have won all three of their previous showdowns with the Spanish side, scoring nine goals while conceding only four.
-
In his entire career as a manager, Pep Guardiola has suffered only two defeats against Los Palanganas in 13 run-ins (W9, D2).
-
Sevilla look to beat an English club in the group stage of the UEFA Champions League for the first time since triumphing over Arsenal 3-1 back in November 2007, losing four and drawing three in the seven encounters that followed.
Broadcast listings
Match details, result and original broadcast info
This match has ended. Below are the original Live broadcast details for this match.
Live TV coverage and streaming in United States
Live TV coverage and streaming in United States
