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Bayern Munich host Manchester City on Wednesday with Thomas Tuchel’s side chasing a 3-0 first leg UEFA Champions League quarterfinal deficit at Allianz Arena. Pep Guardiola and his players blew the Germans away in the opening leg and are now looking to finish the job in Bavaria. Tuchel is dealing with his first tricky spell since taking over from Julian Nagelsmann with just one win from their last four games across all competitions. Erling Haaland and Bernardo Silva each scored once and assisted one another at Etihad Stadium while Bayern looked a shadow of their former selves in leg one. To say that the Bundesliga leaders have a mountain to climb here would be an understatement.
Here’s our storylines, how you can watch the match and more — and while you’re at it, sign up for our new newsletter covering the beautiful game in all its glory, including updates about the most important stories in the sport, here.
How to watch and odds
- Date: Wednesday, Apr. 19 | Time: 3 p.m. ET
- Location: Allianz Arena — Munich
- TV and live stream: Paramount+ and CBS
- Tactics cam: CBS Sports Golazo Network
- Odds: Bayern +170; Draw: +270; City +138 (via Caesars Sportsbook)
Featured Game | Bayern Munchen vs. Manchester City
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Last meeting
Twenty3
The Champions League was previously Bayern’s most consistent arena with 18 points from 18 in Group C under Nagelsmann to finish eight points clear of Inter Milan in second. Despite beating PSG on the road and then at home with two of three goals scored by ex-Parisiens in a 3-0 aggregate success, Tuchel took over and oversaw the heavy opening leg defeat in Manchester which sees them trail by three goals here.
City topped Group G with 14 points from a possible 18, finishing five points ahead of Bayern’s Bundesliga rivals Borussia Dortmund in a group which also featured Sevilla and Copenhagen. Inspired by merciless Haaland, Guardiola’s men pummelled RB Leipzig 8-1 on aggregate in the round of 16 with a 7-0 thrashing seeing Haaland score five. City were good value for their 3-0 first leg win and are now heavy favorites to advance to the semifinals in Germany this midweek.
Storylines
Bayern: Tuchel has confirmed that Sadio Mane will be back in the squad after his altercation with Leroy Sane. Key attacking focal point Eric Maxim Choupo Moting missed the opening leg through injury but could yet make it for this one. Manuel Neuer, Lucas Hernandez, Paul Wanner and Gabriel Marusic are all out injured.
Possible Bayern XI: Sommer; Pavard, Upamecano, De Ligt, Davies; Kimmich (c), Goretzka; Sane, Musiala, Coman; Choupo-Moting.
City: Phil Foden remains out while Guardiola rotated his players for the win over Leicester City this past weekend. Haaland is going for a Premier League record of the most UCL goals in a season since Manchester United’s Ruud van Nistelrooy’s 12 back in 2002-03 and the Norway international needs just one more to level the Dutchman’s tally.
Possible City XI: Ederson; Akanji, Dias, Ake; Stones, Rodri; Silva, Gundogan (c), De Bruyne, Grealish; Haaland.
You can find our full projected Bayern vs. City lineups and starting XIs piece right here.
Player to watch
Bayern: Kingsley Coman. The France international was clutch in Paris with the only goal of the game which unlocked a tricky round of 16 tie and he has a knack for scoring important goals. With Mane and Sane’s bust-up potentially a bit too fresh to see both starting, the 26-year-old could prove key to any faint hopes that Tuchel has of salvaging a semifinal berth. In order to do so, service to Choupo Moting will be absolutely crucial and even then, it is still no guarantee of the big win which is required.
City: Erling Haaland. All eyes will be on the Norwegian hitman once again as he looks to add to his impressive scoring record as he attempts to chase down Cristiano Ronaldo’s record from 2013-14 of 17 goals in one single edition. On 11 already, a potential two-legged semifinal and possibly even a final awaits if the 22-year-old and his teammates can get the job done here — plenty of opportunity to add to an already impressive tally.
Score prediction
Bayern to put up more of a fight than they did in leg one but for the damage to have already been done in Manchester. Expect City to do just enough here and for Haaland to likely be their match winner as they march on to the semis. Pick: Bayern 0, City 1 (0-4 on aggregate).
