Football: Man City fighting fires ahead of Champions League test

LONDON – Manchester City’s quest to finally conquer Europe resumes on Wednesday when Pep Guardiola’s men travel to RB Leipzig for the first leg of their Champions League last-16 clash, but all is not well for the club on or off the field.

City appeared to have laid down a marker in the English Premier League title race by

beating leaders Arsenal 3-1 away on Feb 15,

only to then throw away two points by conceding late to draw 1-1 at Nottingham Forest on Saturday.

They are currently two points behind the Gunners, having played a game more, and have dropped 20 points in 24 games, compared with 21 for the whole of last season.

The English champions are also playing under a cloud after

being charged with more than 100 breaches of financial rules

by the Premier League, dating back to the 2009-10 season.

A lack of consistency in their performances is troubling Guardiola, but goalkeeper Ederson is adamant that the team will go all out to win the competition they most crave.

“We’re coming after it,” he said of City’s quest to win the Champions League for the first time.

“We’re a group of great quality and that shows how much the club has developed over the last five or six years, with Premier League titles, Carabao Cups, FA Cups, Community Shields.

“So this title is what the club needs. It’s what we need and it’s what Guardiola needs at the club, too. This year, we’re going after it.”

Winning the Champions League will be a dream come true for the Brazilian, 29, who had been eyeing the giant trophy since he was a kid.

“From 13 or 14 years old, I started watching European football more. Then, between 15 and 16, I went to Portugal, so the dream was closer to me,” he added.

“After that, my objective was always that – to play in the Champions League, to play at a big club and to win competitions... One of the goals I have set for myself is to win the Champions League.”

City, despite all their riches from their Abu Dhabi owners, have yet to win the Champions League, while Guardiola, who won the trophy twice as coach of Barcelona, has not done so since 2011.

The signing of Erling Haaland

was expected to be the final piece in solving City’s puzzle in Europe.

The Norwegian striker has delivered the goals expected of him, with 32 in all competitions. Yet his arrival is also one of the factors used to explain a dip in City’s collective standards this season.

Despite Haaland’s haul and obvious threat, City had scored more goals as a team at this stage last season, when they did not have the 22-year-old as a target man.

Whether or not the team will stick to passing the ball to him with every chance they get on Wednesday, the man tasked with keeping him in check, Leipzig captain and centre-back Willi Orban, was confident the home side can keep him at bay.

“Of course, it will be a big challenge for us. But we can do it. He is difficult to defend, but with courage you can do it,” he said.

Defensively, City also look more exposed this term – an issue not helped by Guardiola’s willingness to let Joao Cancelo join Bayern Munich on loan, leaving him without a natural left-back.

The injured John Stones will be missing from Wednesday’s match, while Kevin de Bruyne and Aymeric Laporte did not attend training on Tuesday, and it remains to be seen if they are fit.

Leipzig will be without Peter Gulacsi, Dani Olmo and Abdou Diallo, while Christopher Nkunku and Konrad Laimer may not be 100 per cent ready.

Nkunku made a late cameo in Leipzig’s 3-0 win at Wolfsburg on Saturday, setting up a goal for Laimer after a 98-day absence which saw him miss France’s run to the World Cup final in Qatar.

He is in line for a return to the starting XI, and coach Marco Rose said his contribution showed how valuable the star forward is to Leipzig’s hopes. “You could see how good it was for us that Christopher is back. With him on the pitch, we are more unpredictable as a team,” he said. AFP