Man City v Bayern Munich UCL Quarter Final : Preview, Odds, Predictions (April 11)
Initial Thoughts
Pep Guardiola's side are on fire in 2023. But Thomas Tuchel has a point to prove on English soil, and he knows how to beat the Spaniard in knockout competitions.
The Narrative
Manchester City and Bayern Munich will face off for the seventh time in the Champions League on Tuesday night, with the head to head record three wins each.
Both sides bear the hallmark of Pep Guardiola, with the Spanish manager leading Bayern to three Bundesliga titles before arriving at the Etihad back in 2016.
City are playing some of their best ever football, with Erling Harlaan breaking records for fun and the Manchester side closing in on league leaders Arsenal.
But Thomas Tuchel has a knack of outfoxing Guardiola on the highest stage, and the German will arrive back in English soil still smarting from his high-profile exit from Chelsea earlier in the season.
How Tuchel would love to beat his old nemesis once more - and remind the Premier League (and Todd Boehly) just how good a manager he is.
Nuts and Bolts
Following the sacking of Julian Nagelsmann last month, Tuchel's start at Bayern has been mixed to say the least.
The reigning Bundesliga champions overcame title rivals Dortmund in the league, only to fall to a shock 2-1 loss to Freiburg in the cup - a side who’d never previously won at the Allianz Arena.
Bayern avenged that defeat with a 1-0 win away to Freiburg on the weekend, but it’s not the run of results Tuchel would like to take into Tuesday night’s Champions League clash.
A big plus for Bayern is their dominance in the group stage this season, with the German side coming out on top of a qualifying group that featured both Inter Milan and Barcelona.
Bayern won all six group matches, scoring 18 times and conceding only twice. They then beat PSG home and away in the round of the sixteen, winning 3-0 on aggregate against Messi, Mbappe and co.
That means the German side have kept clean sheets in all but one of their UCL fixtures this season, and with Tuchel masterminding wins against Guardiola in the FA Cup semi-final and Champions League final in 2021, Bayern fans have reasons to be hopeful ahead of Tuesday’s quarter final.
Domestically Bayern have looked more shaky of late however, with only two clean sheets in that last seven Bundelsliga fixtures.
That will be music to the ears of Erling Harlaan, who on Saturday became only the third player in English football history to score 44 goals in all competitions across a single season.
With at least ten matches still to play, the Norwegian is likely to far exceed that tally, having racked up an astonishing 11 goals in his last four matches.
Harlaan has struggled against Bayern Munich in the past however, coming out on the losing end of all seven of his previous matches against the German champions during his time at Borussia Dortmund.
Homestand Picks
All odds courtesy of Northstar Bets
City beat RB Leipzig 7-0 at home in their last UCL match. But the Thomas Tuchel factor, plus Bayern’s UCL record this season, make the underdog pick great value on the night.
City have kept only four clean sheets at home this season, so expect both sides to find the net on Tuesday.
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