Here’s our Juventus Vs Manchester City preview, prediction, team news and predicted lineups ahead of Wednesday’s Champions League clash.
Juventus Vs Manchester City Preview
Manchester City have been in free-fall recently. The Premier League champions are enduring their worst run under Pep Guardiola, and have won just once in their last nine games in all competitions.
This has included a 4-1 thumping away in Lisbon against Sporting CP, and an embarrassing 3-3 draw with Feyenoord.
In the latter of those games, they threw away a three-goal lead on home soil in the last 20 minutes.
City have conceded seven goals in their last two Champions League fixtures, and a 3-0 win over Nottingham Forest in the Premier League has done little to stop the rot.
Pep Guardiola’s side have dropped to fourth in the Premier League, eight points adrift of leaders Liverpool.
With the Reds also having a game in hand, City are already being regarded by some as out of the title race entirely.
In Europe, their form has also seen them tumble down the standings. They have slipped to 17th in the 36-team new-look league phase.
Should they drop out of the top 24, they will be eliminated from Europe altogether.
Juventus 🇮🇹🔜 pic.twitter.com/CPPXIZkzPD
— Manchester City (@ManCity) December 8, 2024
Tuesday’s opponents are Juventus, a side City have not beaten in their last five attempts – their longest winless run against any side in Europe.
The two have not met under Pep Guardiola, but with City’s current form, the Italian side will be hoping to maintain that record.
For a more detailed breakdown of the stats between City and Juventus, check out our statistical analysis here.
Juventus won their opening two Champions League fixtures, but have picked up just two points from their next three.
They drew with Aston Villa and Lille last month, and were surprisingly beaten by Stuttgart.
Thiago Motta’s side have also lost ground in Serie A. The Bianconeri are now sixth in the table, seven points adrift of Atalanta in first.
And yet, Juventus remain the only side in the Italian top flight yet to lose a match this season. With six wins and nine draws, they have proven incredibly hard to break down.
They have conceded a joint-lowest of ten league goals in 15 games, and have recorded ten clean sheets.
Juventus Vs Manchester City Team News
City will be boosted by the return of Phil Foden for Tuesday’s game. The England international missed the draw with Crystal Palace due to bronchitis but is back in contention.
Defenders Nathan Ake and Manuel Akanji both picked up injuries in the win over Forest, though. John Stones and Mateo Kovacic are also out, along with long-term absentees Oscar Bobb and Rodri.
Rico Lewis is suspended from domestic action after his red card at the weekend, but is still available for Tuesday’s European fixture.
Juventus’ long injury list grew slightly shorter at the weekend, with striker Dusan Vlahovic starting after three weeks out.
Nicolo Savona also returned, and will compete with ex-City fullback Danilo for a start in midweek.
Nico Gonzalez, Weston McKennie and Douglas Luiz are all out, along with Juan Cabral and Gleision Bremer (both ACL).
Andrea Cambiaso is a doubt after picking up an ankle sprain recently.
Juventus Vs Manchester City Predicted Lineups
Juventus: Perin; Danilo, Gatti, Kalulu, Rizzo; Locatelli, Fagioli; Conceicao, Koopmeiners, Weah; Vlahovic
Manchester City: Ortega; Walker, Dias, Gvardiol, Lewis; Silva, Gundogan; Savio, De Bruyne, Nunes; Haaland
Juventus Vs Manchester City Prediction
Hosts Juventus have shown they know how to keep a clean sheet. They have been almost impossible to beat this season, despite clearly lacking firepower in attack.
Dusan Vlahovic’s return might give them the edge in this one, though. City are in need of a big result to get their season back on track, but Pep Guardiola’s shell-shocked squad have plenty of injuries to contend with.
We think this one will be a tight and cagey affair, with neither side full of confidence.
Prediction: Juventus 1-0 Manchester City
