Pep Guardiola will continue his quest to lift the Champions League title with Manchester City as the Citizens take on German Bundesliga side Monchengladbach in the first leg of their round of 16 tie. City are currently on fire and are the most in-form team in Europe’s top 5 leagues with several consecutive wins (18 in total, in all competitions) that has seen them establish a 10-point lead at the top of the Premier League table above Manchester United who lie in second place.

The tie will be played at the Puskas Arena and will be used as the home venue for Monchengladbach due to Covid-19 restrictions. The favorites heading into the fixture are Manchester City not just because of their current run of form, but their ability and drive to grind out results from even the tightest of games.

While Monchengladbach are the underdogs heading into the tie, they still have a real chance of conjuring a positive result, especially given that their manager Marco Rose happens to be one of the best tactically-gifted managers in the Bundesliga.

The German team would need to be at their best overall, especially in midfield where City have been more dominant against their rivals so far this season. Rose could utilize wide attacker Hofmann and drop him deep in defensive midfield to provide cover for the wing-backs.

Manchester City, on the other hand, do not have many injury worries heading into the fixture, and manager Guardiola is expected to make use of his favored 4-3-3 formation. Rodri may have to come in for Fernandinho in midfield given how good he is at winning back possession.

Gladbach Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Sommer, Lainer, Ginter, Elvedi, Bensebaini, Kramer, Neuhaus, Hofmann, Stindl, Thuram, Plea.

Manchester City Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Ederson, Walker, Stones, Dias, Cancelo, De Bruyne, Rodri, Gündogan  Sterling, Jesus, Foden.