Lisbon and Porto are the cities in which Manchester City have suffered their last two continental eliminations. During the summer of 2020, Pep Guardiola’s men fell to the first change in the mini-tournament that UEFA organized to end a Champions League interrupted by the global outbreak of COVID. They lost to Olympique de Lyon in the quarterfinals when the sky-blue project seemed ready to conquer Europe. They took a new step during 2020-21, reaching the first final in their history. But in Porto it was Chelsea who raised their second orejona thanks to a goal from Havertz.
To resubmit a candidacy for continental champion, the Mancunians must first face their ghosts from the past (Follow today’s game live on As.com). Guardiola does not count on Walker for tonight after the winger’s expulsion in Leipzig. It will be the first of the three games of suspension of the English. Grealish and Gabriel Jesus, injured, have not traveled to Portugal either. Foden or Sterling, who scored three goals on Saturday, will lead the offense cityzen.
After winning their first league in 19 years, Sporting wants to consolidate. Amorim has rebuilt a great one in ruins. They were second in Group C despite losing their first two games, against Ajax and Borussia Dortmund. Paulinho and Pedro Gonçalves are the main weapons of a team that includes Spaniards Pedro Porro, Sarabia and Adán. The lions seek to improve their only precedent in this instance of the tournament: in 2009 they fell to Bayern Munich 12-1 on aggregate.