Atalanta v Manchester City: Champions League Preview

I envy those Manchester City fans who are making the journey to Milan to watch this Champions League game in the grand old San Siro Stadium.

With rumoured redevelopment lurking, this could be a last opportunity to see Manchester City at this lovely old atmospheric stadium in its familar guise. A great hulking ground which seems to enclose the pitch in a claustrophobic hug.

Hopefully on the beautiful green turf we will get to see a scintillating game of football as two quick attacking sides joust for supremacy. We know that City are likely to go all out for victory, in the hope we can get the job done and seal qualification from the group and we also know Atalanta have to secure a win to seal any chance of progression.

So the scene is set for a thrilling spectacle where any defensive lapses are likely to be punished at every opportunity.

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City are struggling with injuries to such an extent it is even more tricky than usual to try and second guess Pep’s team selection. With the game away at Anfield looming large on the horizo, what will Pep decide to do?

Will he seek to protect some players by reducing their time on the field midweek, or will he try and build momentum?

There are some guaranteed starters though, like Ederson who will be in goal and hopefully making good use of the pitch with his distribution. This is the kind of game where he will need to be on top form because Atalanta will have goal scoring chances.

I suspect at full back we will see Joao Cancelo and Angelino, with Benjamin Mendy and Kyle Walker preserved for the trials at Anfield. Similarly, I believe Fernandinho will not feature midweek, being rested for Liverpool. That probably means we will start John Stones and Nicolas Otamendi at centre back with Eric Garcia on the bench.

Defensive midfield is limited in terms of options so I expect Ilkay Gundogan to start with a clear plan to rest him if we establish a lead. Tommy Doyle could well get his Champions League debut in that event.

The injury to David Silva should mean that Phil Foden starts, but given he is suspended following his red card last time out, it presents something of a conundrum for Pep.  Accordingly that should mean Kevin De Bruyne is starting the game alongside Bernardo Silva.

Up front I believe will be Sergio Aguero, but that is largely because I think Gabriel Jesus will be preferred against Liverpool because of his pressing game. Alongside Sergio will be Raheem Sterling and Riyad Mahrez.

That side should be enough to claim a victory but we should not think this game will be easy. Atalanta have struggled so far in their debut Champions League campaign but will be fighting for their pride at leastz and we already know, everyone raises their game against the Champions of England.

Should things go according to plan for City, this will not be a high scoring match. I figure once a lead has been established, game management will kick in to see the result out. At that point squad rotation should be the order of the day. Therefore I think a 3:1 win would be most likely.

Anything can happen in these matches though and for Atalanta this is effectively a knock out game. We must hope City do not have too much focus on the weekend ahead.