Barcelona vs. Manchester City
Barcelona and Manchester City faceoff in a pre-season friendly on the 30th of July. The match is set to take place at the Camping World Stadium at 7 PM ET.
Barcelona will kick off their new era under the vastly experienced Hansi Flick. The Spanish giants sacked their hometown hero coach Xavi after the end of the 2023-24 La Liga season. Following this match, they have huge heavyweight matchups coming, including an El Clasico, before facing Italian giants AC Milan.
Manchester City, on the other hand, are deep into their pre-season fixtures. However, things haven’t really gone their way. They started off with a 4-3 defeat against Celtic before taking on AC Milan. In another high-scoring thriller, City went down to the Italian team 3-2. Although a lot of key players didn’t feature for the Citizens, they will be raring to get a win when they face Barcelona.
The notable names set to be missing from Barcelona are Frenkie de Jong, Ronald Araujo, Pedri, Gavi and Ansu Fati. Ferran Torres and Lamine Yamal who were a part of Spain’s EURO 2024 win are on holiday and will not be a part of this match. Robert Lewandowski will be the biggest name for the Spanish giants. Besides three youngsters, Fermin Lopez, Pau Cubarsi and Eric Garcia are at the Paris Olympics representing Spain U23.
Predicted XI: Ter Stegen; J Araujo, I Martinez, Christensen, Fort; Romeu, Gundogan, Torre; Roque, Lewandowski, Victor
Manchester City have a ton of big names missing. Among them are Kyle Walker, Ruben Dias, Nathan Ake, Rodri, Doku, Kevin de Bruyne, Manuel Akanji and Bernardo Silva. Certain big-name starters are Jack Grealish, Erling Haaland and Mateo Kovacic.
Predicted XI: Ederson; Lewis, Simpson-Pusey, Doyle, Gvardiol; Kovacic, Perrone; Bobb, McAtee, Grealish; Haaland
Andreas Christensen will be the most experienced man in the Barcelona defense. The Dane will be up against the in-form Haaland, who will impose his physical strength to get on the scoresheet.
Barcelona: 4.1
Manchester City: 1.75
Although, the odds favor Manchester City, they might not beat Barcelona. This is mainly due to the fact that City are missing a ton of key players in their squad. Comparatively, the Spanish team have a healthier squad. Expect a close match, but with Barcelona coming out on top.
Manchester City are one of the most powerful football clubs in the world right now,…
Mikel Arteta has transformed Arsenal into a well-oiled machine ever since he took charge. Although…
Manchester United face a daunting trip to the West Midlands for this intriguing 2024/25 Premier…
Over the last decade, sports betting has exploded in popularity, expanding from a traditional pastime…
Leicester City and Everton will clash in this match during week five of the Premier…
Football betting is a favorite gambling activity for sports fans worldwide. It may be exciting,…