Fixtures continue to come thick and fast for Manchester City, who will be seeking to avoid losing three games in a row for the first time since 2017-18 when they travel to Portugal to face Sporting Lisbon in the Champions League on Tuesday night.
Pep Guardiola‘s injury-hit squad crashed out in the last 16 of the EFL Cup after suffering a 2-1 defeat at Tottenham Hotspur, just three days before losing in disappointing fashion by the same scoreline against Bournemouth in the Premier League last weekend.
Defeat at the Vitality Stadium brought an end to City’s club-record 32-game unbeaten run in the Premier League and the Citizens have also slipped to second in the table after new leaders Liverpool came from behind to beat Brighton & Hove Albion 2-1 at Anfield.
Man City will face Brighton on Saturday before the international break, but they must first turn their attention back to the Champions League and to their fourth fixture in the newly-formed league phase away against an in-form Sporting Lisbon outfit.
The Citizens have accumulated seven points from their opening three games in the Champions League so far and currently sit third in the 36-team table, level on points with Tuesday’s opponents Sporting in eighth place.
There has been a lot going on at Sporting recently and it was confirmed last Friday that head coach Ruben Amorim will be leaving the club to replace Erik ten Hag as Manchester United manager after this month’s international break.
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Amorim to face Man City as Sporting boss before joining Man United
Amorim will be in charge of Sporting against Man City on Tuesday and one final Primeira Liga fixture against Braga on Saturday before officially taking the reins at Old Trafford on November 11.
The 39-year-old coach is not the only senior figure at Sporting heading to Manchester, as it was confirmed last month that director of football Hugo Viana will succeed Txiki Begiristain at the Etihad Stadium next year.
Under the tutelage of Amorim, Sporting have won two Primeira Liga title in the last four seasons and they have since made an exceptional start to the current campaign, winning 14 and drawing one of their last 15 games across all competitions.
One of their standout performers has been leading marksman Viktor Gyokeres, who has elevated his game to new heights since competing his £21m transfer from Coventry City to the Estadio Jose Alvalade in 2023, scoring a remarkable 63 goals and providing 19 assists in just 66 appearances – numbers even Erling Haaland would be proud of!
Sporting enter Tuesday’s showdown with Man City on the back of a thumping 5-1 home league victory over Estrela last Friday, courtesy of four goals from Gyokeres who has now taken his impressive goal tally for the season to 20 in just 16 games.
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Will red-hot Gyokeres pile more misery on Man City?
Gyokeres, who has subsequently been linked with Man United following confirmation of Amorim’s move to Old Trafford, is expected to lead the line for Sporting on Tuesday and will fancy his chances of breaching a Man City backline that has kept just five clean sheets in 16 competitive fixtures across all competitions this season.
Amorim’s Sporting suffered a heavy 5-0 defeat on their own turf against Man City in the last 16 of the Champions League in February 2022, but it is difficult to envisage the Citizens winning as comfortably this time around considering their current form and injury woes.
Following a jaded display at Bournemouth, Guardiola may consider making some changes to his starting lineup and the prospect of the Catalan coach selecting a few highly-rated academy stars cannot be ruled out.
Sports Mole senior reporter Oliver Thomas spoke with Man City expert Steven McInerney from Esteemed Kompany to discuss the threat of Sporting’s star man Gyokeres, what challenges the Citizens could face against the Portuguese giants and whether Guardiola should freshen up his team amidst the club’s hectic fixture schedule.
Press play on the video at the top of this article to hear the full discussion.
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