No Mercy from City
Crisis ravaged Schalke 04
The first leg of this tie was pretty bonkers. Schalke 04 who were in a semi-crisis in the Bundesliga somehow managed to score twice - both penalties - and for most of the second half looked like they were going to steal a famous victory. It wasn't to be; in the 85th and 90th minute Man City pulled a couple back and eventually won the game 3-2.
Schalke have scored 2 and conceded 11 goals in their past three matches since they played City.
The semi-crisis has now become a full on crisis. These are the results since Man City visited Germany.
- Mainz vs. Schalke 04 (3-0)
- Schalke 04 vs. Fortuna (0-4)
- Werder Bremen vs. Schalke 04 (4-2)
Tedesco is still officially in charge for the game, but barring a miracle at the Etihad, he is expected to be fired almost immediately after the match. Sound like the perfect build up for an away tie against Man City?
An unwanted comparison
This Champions League season has been more than a little unpredictable. Man Utd overturned a 0-2 deficit and Ajax beat Real Madrid 1-4 at the Bernabéu.
Man City will be determined to not let this happen to them. City, like PSG, have been accused of lacking mental strength in the Champions League. Man City have progressed slightly further than PSG in recent years, even reaching the finals in 2015/2016, but have often been knocked out after toothless performances. The Emirati owned Man City will want to avoid any more comparisons to the Qatari owned PSG by seeing of Schalke 04 in the second leg.
In fact, Aguero issued a public rallying cry, to City after the Man Utd victory in Paris, pleading with his teammates to not underestimate their opponents on Tuesday. He is right of course, but as a punter I certainly don't rate this Schalke team and don't see them getting anything more than a battering. City showed they are scoring again after their 3-1 win against Watford last night and I predict they will score more than two goals and win this game with ease.
I am betting on Man City to win with an Asian Handicap of -1.5.
