Manchester City VS Schalke 04 Match Prediction
- 2019-03-12
- 20:00:00
Manchester City will win this match.
Schalke and Manchester City have now played twice. City won 2-3 in Germany in the first leg, and before that they won 0-2 there in the old UEFA Cup back in 2008.
%HEAD-TO-HEAD-STATS-BANNER%
Bet365 have the following odds available for this match:
Manchester City are at 1/6 to win, a draw is at 13/2 and a Schalke win is at 12/1.
City to move on is at 1/150 and Schalke to do so can be had at 28/1.
In the first leg, Manchester City saw an early lead get erased via late first half penalties for Schalke. That gave the Germans a shock 2-1 lead at the break, and it looked like they could make things even better when Nicolas Otamendi was sent off. But the Citizens fought back with aplomb, aided by the brilliance of super sub Leroy Sane, former Schalke man, who scored a sublime free kick to draw them level, and then helped set up Raheem Sterling’s winner. At 2-3, this really should only go one way.
That’s because Manchester City are top of the pile in the English Premier League currently, sitting a point above Liverpool at the moment. They had some nervy moments in the first half at the weekend against Watford, but they recovered in plenty of time to have a second half opening salvo that effectively killed off the Hornets. City have been in stunning form of late, and despite missing a couple of players- including the incredibly influential Fernandinho- and having a day less to rest, they will be massive favorites to not only win the tie but also the game.
That’s because Schalke are just not on a good run at all. The Bundesliga club have gone over a month without a win, and they come into this match trailing after the first leg. They’d have hoped to have a lead or at least be level, but they will have to do some serious Houdini magic to get themselves out of this box. As things stand in Germany’s top flight, they are only a few points above the drop zone. If they have a poor run in and others get their act straight, they could end up facing a relegation playoff or potentially worse.
At home, City have 21 wins and just two losses this season in all competitions. One of those losses came to Lyon back in September, while the other was a shock reverse to Crystal Palace in the Premier League. Since that loss in December, they have rattled off nine wins in all comps. They have won by an aggregate score of 39 to 3 in those games.
Away from home Schalke have four wins, five draws, and eight losses in all competitions this term. They have struggled of late particularly on their travels, losing three of their last four. They have won just once in their last nine, underlining what should be seen as major gulf in class between the two sides as they get ready for this encounter.
Ladbrokes have City scoring inside ten minutes at 18/5.
No for both sides scoring, via Betfair, is at 1.65.
There will be no excuses here for Manchester City. Anything but an emphatic, comfortable win will be looked at as a disappointment. They don’t disappoint with a stunning show of force to move to the quarterfinals.
Pep Guardiola has a couple of players suspended, with both center midfielder Fernandinho and center back Nicolas Otamendi unable to play. Center back John Stones and backup goalkeeper Claudio Bravo are also both set to miss out via injuries
Leroy Sane had to wait and bide his time in the first leg, but when he did come on he made the telling impact. The former Schalke man scored a stunning goal to equalize to give his side a much better chance to win this tie. Look for him to once again play a key role, likely as a starter this time around. Sergio Aguero is another to watch. The Argentine also scored in the win, scoring the opener, for his third of the UCL.
Manchester City have four wins and a draw in their last five matches:
3-1 home win vs Watford
0-1 win at Bournemouth
1-0 home win vs West Ham
0-0 draw, penalty win vs Chelsea (EFL Cup Final)
2-3 win at Schalke (UCL)
Domenico Tedesco will be missing three midfielders due to injury, with Alessandro Schopf, Omar Mascarell, and Daniel Caligiuri all ruled out. The good news is that Suat Serdar, who was suspended on Friday, is eligible to play in this competition.
If Schalke need someone that can keep a calm head, then they need not look any further than Nabil Bentaleb. The former Spurs man has blossomed in Germany, gaining confidence tremendously over the past couple years. He scored twice in the first leg, both from the spot, and will be crucial in the center of the park. Weston McKennie is another that will play in there, and the American has also made the most of his chances of late on a not-so-good team. He had an assist at the weekend for their opener and has scored in this competition this term.
Schalke have four losses and a draw in their last five matches:
4-2 loss at Werder Bremen
0-4 home loss vs Fortuna Dusseldorf
3-0 loss at Mainz
2-3 home loss vs Manchester City (UCL)
0-0 home draw vs Freiburg