Soccer predictions online for Brugge – Man City
Club Brugge hosts Manchester City at the Jay Breydelstadion in a game from Group A of the UEFA Champions League. Stay with us because we will take a look at it in our soccer predictions online. Let’s go!
The Belgian side couldn’t dream of a better start of their Champions League campaign as they won four points in their first two games against PSG and RB Leipzig. In the first round Club Brugge made a prestigious 1-1 draw against the French giants while in the second one they secured a 2-1 win against RB Leipzig in Germany. Now Brugge are second in the standings with 4 points – being on par with the current leader PSG.
Surprisingly the Belgian club won its visit to RB Leipzig at the Red Bull Arena in the previous round. The Germans opened the score after just five minutes of playing, but Philippe Clement’s boys didn’t feel scared, so they turned the game around until the halftime break. Hans Vanaken equalised in the 22th minute while Mats Rits scored the winner few minutes before the break. In the second half Leipzig tried to avoid the defeat, but Club Brugge defended well and didn’t concede for a second time.
Club Brugge are obviously on the rise since the beginning of the 2021/22 season. The club is leading the standings in the Belgian First Division A with 22 points and just one loss from 11 matches played. The head coach Clement is doing a solid work since his appointment at the position, so he deserves some praise for this.
We don’t think the Belgians will be intimidated by Manchester City on Tuesday. They already faced PSG in this group and they didn’t lose. This means that Club Brugge has enough confidence to face the biggest teams in Europe. The performance against PSG is the blueprint they will follow against Pep Guardiola’s football machine. For Brugge it’d be very difficult to reach the knockout stage of the Champions League, but they have some solid chances to finish third and progress to Europa League.
The midfielder Hans Vanaken is the player who scored in Club Brugge’s both games since the beginning of the season. The 29-years old loves to join the attack from midfield, so he scored against both PSG and RB Leipzig.
The 20-years old striker Charles De Ketelaere is one of the exciting players in Club Brugge’s current squad. The young ace could turn out to be one of Belgium’s new stars in the future. De Ketelaere still lacks enough exprience, but he’s doing well enough to deserve some praise from media and fans.
The Dutch winger Noa Lang is another player Manchester City should keep an eye on when they face Club Brugge. The 22-years old scored 16 league goals last season and he’s a player who really loves to enter the penalty area and make an effort. City must be careful with his pace as well.
Manchester City will try to bounce back after their 0-2 defeat against PSG in the previous round. The Cityzens didn’t show their best face and had to accept the loss in Paris. They are still in a very good position to chase a qualification to the 1/8-finals, though – right now the English side is just one point behind their next opponent Club Brugge in the standings.
For Man City this is an important game, so maybe Pep Guardiola will reduce the rotation in his line-up and stick to his Gala XI. Raheem Sterling and Riyad Mahrez started from the first minute against PSG, but don’t be surprised to see them on the bench on Tuesday. This would mean that Phil Foden and Gabriel Jesus will return to the starting eleven. Guardiola gave a chance to Sterling and Mahrez to prove their qualities in Paris, but it didn’t really work very well.
Jack Grealish is a player who should step up in the next few games when City will play five times for just 14 days of time. The former Aston Villa captain joined the Cityzens for a record fee of 100 million pounds in the summer, but so far we are not entirely sure that he’s defending his price tag very successfully. Yes, Grealish is having his moments on the pitch, but he should be much more consistent for a 100 million player, don’t you think? We all know he has the qualities to succeed at City, but we must see if he has the mental capabilities to do so.
At the same time Gabriel Jesus is having a blast since the start of the season. The Brazilian was mainly a bench player last season, but now things are different for him. Jesus is having a great time playing as a winger despite being considered a striker. Right now he’s doing more assists than goals, but that’s completely okay for his new position. This creates another problem for Guardiola, though – he still doesn’t have a number 9 after the departure of Sergio Aguero. City failed to sign Harry Kane in the summer and that’s creating a hole in their squad. Usually Guardiola uses Jack Grealish as a false 9, but not every time it’s providing the results he hopes for.
Ruben Dias remains a key figure in Manchester City’s team. The Portuguese is the leader of the Cityzens’ defense, so his performance in Belgium is going to be crucial. If Manchester City are doing well while defending, that’s always giving them more opportunities in attack as well.
That’s the soccer predictions online for the Champions League fixture between Club Brugge and Manchester City from Group A. The Belgian side will try to prove that their draw against PSG and the win in Germany were not just luck. At the same time Manchester City must offer some kind of reaction after their defeat in Paris in the previous round. The English team remains a favorite in this clash, but don’t underestimate Club Brugge – they have enough capabilities to offer City some trouble.