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Manchester City travel to Bayern Munich tomorrow evening as they look to secure their first ever Champions League win.
This is the first time City have been involved in Europe’s elite club competition and is a sign of their excellent progress in the last couple of years.
With Roberto Mancini at the helm, millions of pounds to spend and a playing squad stronger than most in Europe, this is where Manchester City belong. They will want to prove this in Germany though with a convincing performance.
In their first Champions League game of the campaign, City perhaps struggled with nerves on the big occasion as they stumbled to a 1-1 home draw with Napoli. They will want a much improved performance against Bayern Munich.
A lot will depend on how they approach the game of course. Do they go for the win straight away? Do they bide their time and look to hit the Germans on the counter attack? Is their first priority not to lose and anything more than that is a bonus?
Well, City midfielder David Silva believes it should be the former. He has urged Mancini to adopt an offensive style of play and to ‘attack them like we do at home’.
Looking at the respective league form of both sides suggests this is going to be a very entertaining fixture. With City unbeaten and joint top of the Premier League and Bayern two points clear at the summit of the Bundesliga, it sees two in-form sides do battle.
As for the team news, Mario Balotelli is pushing for a start after making a positive impact from the bench against Everton at the weekend, while Carlos Tevez is set to miss out once again.
For the home side, Arjen Robben will come back into the side after being rested for domestic action at the weekend. The former Chelsea man will join Mario Gomez and Thomas Muller to form an attacking trio that will have City’s defence on their toes.
Match odds
There are not too many matches that Manchester City are underdogs for these days, but this is one of them. Bayern are 1.91 (10/11) for the three points, while City are an outside bet at 3.75 (11/4) with Bet365. The draw is available at 3.50 (5/2) with Coral.
Correct score
There is perhaps more value in the correct score market. If you expect a narrow Bayern Munich win for example, you can back a 1-0 home victory at 8.00 (7/1) with Ladbrokes.
For City nick an away win, you can back a 2-1 away with Ladbrokes at odds of 15.00 (14/1). Other attractive options are 3-2 to Bayern Munich at 26.00 (25/1) and a 2-2 draw at 17.00 (16/1).
First goalscorer
There are an incredible number of candidates in this market. Leading the way is Bayern striker Mario Gomez at 6.00 (5/1) with William Hill, followed by team-mate Nils Petersen and Manchester City striker Sergio Aguero, both available at 7.00 (6/1 with BoyleSports.
It is always more fun to have a bet on an outsider for the first goal, so with this in mind, Samir Nasri could be an excellent shout at 13.00 (12/1) with Ladbrokes.
Recommended bets
Bayern Munich and Manchester City to draw 2-2 @ 17.00 (16/1)
Samir Nasri to score first at 13.00 (12/1)
