Manchester City vs. FC Copenhagen Prediction & Betting Tips

In what promises to be a thrilling encounter, Manchester City is set to face off against FC Copenhagen in the Champions League on Tuesday, with the defending champions looking to finish the job after a good result in the first leg.

Date: 06/05/2024

Kick-off time: 20:00

Location: Etihad Stadium

For Manchester City, the Champions League was once their Achilles heel as a club but now, as defending champions, they are coming into this game as one of the most dominant sides in Europe over the course of the last couple of years and have aspirations of claiming successive crowns. Despite experiencing some inconsistency in their performances this season, City remain a force to be reckoned with, boasting an array of talent that few teams can match.

Currently sitting second in the Premier League, just one point behind leaders Arsenal, City are enjoying a strong campaign overall, albeit falling short of the lofty standards set in previous seasons. Nonetheless, manager Pep Guardiola's side remains confident in their ability to mount a successful title defence in Europe's premier club competition and are still well in the mix for three trophies.

In the first leg of their tie against FC Copenhagen, City emerged victorious with a commanding 3-1 win, thanks to goals from Kevin De Bruyne, Phil Foden, and Bernardo Silva. With a comfortable lead heading into the second leg, City will be looking to maintain their momentum and secure passage to the next round with another clinical performance.

Key to City's success has been the stellar form of several key players, including Phil Foden, who is by most accounts currently playing the best football of his career, and striker Erling Haaland, who has been prolific in front of goal with six goals in his last two games. Additionally, the return of defender/midfielder John Stones from injury has provided a significant boost to City's all-round play.

With Guardiola's impeccable record in Champions League knockout ties after winning the first leg away from home, City will be aiming to make history by becoming only the third team to win ten consecutive Champions League games. With the prospect of back-to-back European titles within their grasp, City will be leaving no stone unturned in their quest for the final at Wembley in June.

On the other side of the pitch, FC Copenhagen enter the clash with Manchester City as underdogs but determined to defy the odds and cause an upset. Despite their relatively modest (by their standards) standing in the Danish Superliga, Copenhagen have enjoyed a remarkable run in the Champions League this season, defying expectations to reach the knockout stages.

Finishing second in Group A, which included heavyweights such as Bayern Munich and Manchester United, Copenhagen proved themselves to be a resilient and competitive outfit capable of holding their own against Europe's elite. Despite suffering a 3-1 defeat in the first leg against City, Copenhagen delivered a spirited performance and showcased their potential on the big stage.

Under the guidance of manager Jacob Neestrup, Copenhagen will be looking to build on their impressive Champions League campaign and make life difficult for City in the second leg. With solid players such as former Southampton winger Mohamed Elyounoussi and Danish midfielder Magnus Mattsson leading the charge, Copenhagen will be aiming to give their opponents a run for their money.

However, Copenhagen's form in the Danish Superliga has been slightly underwhelming this season, and they will need to raise their game to another level if they are to stand any chance of overturning the deficit against City. Nonetheless, with nothing to lose and everything to gain, Copenhagen will be approaching the second leg with confidence and determination as they look to upset the odds and make history of their own.

Manchester City Team News:

City are still set to be without Jack Grealish who Pep Guardiola anticipates will be out until after the international break.

Other than that, the Sky Blues have a clean bill of health and Guardiola is likely to make a change or two with an eye on a crunch clash with Liverpool at Anfield at the weekend. Joško Gvardiol is highly likely to come back into the starting lineup, as are Manuel Akanji and Julián Alvarez. One of Mateo Kovačić or Matheus Nunes are also likely to be given a place in the starting lineup, with Oscar Bobb and Rico Lewis vying for a spot in the XI.

FC Copenhagen Team News:

Midfielder Lukas Lerager is expected to continue to miss out here while Peter Ankersen and Nicolai Boilesen also remain on the sidelines. Jordan Larsson is also a major doubt after being forced off the pitch after coming on as a substitute in the weekend's game away at Midtjylland.

Left-back Kevin Diks and midfielder Diogo Gonçalves are both expected to come back into the starting lineup for this one after starting on the bench at the weekend.

Manchester City are coming into this game in typically good form having gone unbeaten in their last nineteen games in all competitions, winning their last four on the spin. Their most recent game was a convincing 3-1 win over their city rivals in the Manchester derby. The game followed what has become a pretty familiar derby day dynamic throughout Pep Guardiola's reign where United show an admirable amount of fight in the early portion of the game, but are utterly played off the park and ultimately die a slow death.

Marcus Rashford opened the scoring for the visitors with a moment of brilliance from distance but a sublime brace from Phil Foden and a late goal from Erling Haaland sealed the three points for a City side that had United pinned in their own third for almost the whole 90 minutes.

Prior to that game, City claimed a thumping 6-2 win away at Luton Town in the FA Cup which followed two hard-fought 1-0 wins against Bournemouth and Brentford. These last few weeks alone have demonstrated how adept City are at finding ways to win games, regardless of which forms of adversity they face.

City are utterly ruthless when playing at the Etihad, and come into this game having not lost on their own patch in any competition since a 1-2 loss to Brentford back in November 2022.

FC Copenhagen are entering this game amidst a mixed run of form having won three and lost two of their last five games. Their latest outing saw them fall to a 2-0 loss away at Midtjylland, a result that saw the home side move three points ahead of them in the title race. The loss also means they've now lost three of their last five games in the league so their form is quite a concern heading into this one.

Away from home they've won two, drawn one and lost two of their last five games on the road so they're a mixed bag in that regard. Viktor Claesson and Magnus Mattsson both have two goals in their last four games and will be looking to continue their form here.

Even with projected changes to the starting lineup, City should come out on top in this one and should have plenty enough quality to secure a convincing win. Man City 3-1 FC Copenhagen.

Don’t forget to check out the rest of our previews, tips and offers for this weekend’s action. Footy Accumulators is the #1 football betting site for the latest on betting in the UK - download the Betting Hub app for more!

This game will be available to watch on TNT Sports 1 for U.K. viewers, while radio coverage will be provided by BBC Radio 5 Live.

• Latest match predictions
• Football tips
• Football accumulator tips
• Football bet of the day