By Robert Wheeler
- Manchester City play Bayern Munich
- Guardiola is up against Tuchel again
- Lampard’s Chelsea faces Real Madrid
Europe – Just two British sides are left in the competition but they face a tough challenge to stay in it, with Manchester City up against Bayern Munich and Chelsea playing Real Madrid.
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Manchester City vs Bayern Munich, Tuesday April 11, kick-off 20:00
Manchester City had a convincing 4-1 victory over Southampton at the weekend with Erling Haaland scoring twice. Haaland who is a former Borussia Dortmund player comes up against the rivals of his last club as City take on Bayern Munich in the Champions League this weekend.
The tie also sees Pep Guardiola face the last team he managed before coming to England. This becomes even more intriguing now that Thomas Tuchel is the new head coach of Bayern. Tuchel’s Chelsea side beat City in the final of the competition in 2021.
This tournament is the only competition to elude Guardiola at City. He cannot claim to be a success in England unless he wins the Champions League with the Sky Blues. However, he will have to get past the manager who stopped him at the final hurdle two years ago if he is to do so.
Since Tuchel took over at Bayern, he has managed just three games, winning twice in the Bundesliga but losing in the DFB-Pokal. It is still very early days for Tuchel back in Germany but he knows how to win the Champions League so City must be wary of his abilities.
Score prediction: Manchester City 2-1 Bayern Munich
Real Madrid vs Chelsea, Wednesday April 12, kick-off 20:00
Frank Lampard‘s second spell as Chelsea boss may have ended in a defeat to Wolverhampton Wanderers. However, it is the Champions League where his side really has something to play for the remainder of this season. Lampard knows how to win the competition as a player where under interim manager Roberto Di Matteo they beat Bayern Munich in the final in 2012. Lampard is the Blues caretaker now and will be hoping to replicate the success of his former coach.
He also has a very good record in the competition as a manager, Lampard got the Blues out of the group stage in the 2021/22 season with an unbeaten record. Although, he was replaced by Tuchel that season who went on to win the tournament. Now Lampard has a chance to have a go at some unfinished business.
Much of the side that won the Champions League in 2022 remains the same. This includes the man who scored the winning goal against Manchester City, Kai Havertz.
It will be a tough fixture though, Real Madrid is the defending champions and has won the competition more than any other team. However, they lost to Villareal at the weekend which leaves them 12 points off Barcelona in La Liga. At Los Blancos, you are expected to win the Champions League or the domestic league each year. Carlo Ancelotti‘s side will unlikely catch Barca in La Liga this year so they will be even more hungry to win in Europe this season.
Score prediction: Real Madrid 3-0 Chelsea
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