Manchester City vs Sporting CP Champions League round of 16 preview: Where to watch, predicted line-ups, squad changes

Wednesday, March 9, 2022

When is it? How can you watch it? What are the possible line-ups? All you need to know about the UEFA Champions League round of 16 second leg between Manchester City and Sporting CP.

Jack Grealish in training ahead of the Sporting decider PA Images via Getty Images

Manchester City and Sporting CP meet in the UEFA Champions League round of 16 second leg on Wednesday 9 March.

Man. City vs Sporting at a glance

When: Wednesday 9 March (21:00 CET kick-off)
Where: City of Manchester Stadium, Manchester
What: UEFA Champions League round of 16 second leg
How it stands: City lead 5-0 after the first leg
How to follow: Build-up and live coverage will appear here

Where to watch Man. City vs Sporting on TV

Fans can find their local UEFA Champions League broadcast partner(s) here.

What happened in the first leg?

Highlights: Sporting CP 0-5 Man. City

In a nutshell, City turned on the style and Sporting could not live with them. Josep Guardiola's side burst out the blocks and were 4-0 up by half-time thanks to two goals from Bernardo Silva and one apiece for Riyad Mahrez and Phil Foden. Raheem Sterling added a fifth after the break, leaving Sporting to ponder where they go from here.

Starting line-ups

Manchester City: Ederson; Egan-Riley, Stones, Laporte, Zinchenko; Gündoğan, Fernandinho, Bernardo Silva; Foden, Jesus, Sterling

Sporting: Adán; Gonçalo Inácio, Coates, Luís Neto; Pedro Porro, Bruno Tabata, Ugarte, Matheus Reis; Sarabia, Paulinho, Slimani

Away goals rule abolished

There has been a rule change for 2021/22: ties level after the second leg will go to extra time and a penalty shoot-out if required, irrespective of the number of away goals a team has scored.

Form guide

Manchester City
Since first leg: WWWL
Where they stand: 1st in Premier League, FA Cup 6th round

Sporting
Since first leg: WLDW
Where they stand: 2nd in Portuguese Liga, Portuguese League Cup winners, Portuguese Cup semi-finals

Expert predictions

Matthew Howarth, Manchester City reporter
City go into this game on the back of a thumping Manchester derby victory and, with Liverpool still breathing down their necks in the Premier League, manager Pep Guardiola will be keen for his side to maintain their momentum across all competitions. Don't expect last season's beaten finalists to go easy on Sporting after their emphatic first-leg win – they will want to finish the job in style.

Watch every Sporting group stage goal

Carlos Machado, Sporting reporter
With this tie all but over and so many regular starters missing, Rúben Amorim will be forced to make changes, particularly in midfield. As the Sporting CP coach said after the first leg, facing opponents like City will only help his team to grow, pick up experience and learn valuable lessons. And since City will likely not be in top gear, Sporting may have a better chance to compete and produce a different outcome.

What the coaches say

Pep Guardiola, Manchester City manager: "I said after the first leg, that 5-0 was not the reality or the difference between our teams. But we found the goals quick; four shots on target, four goals. Sometimes that happens. When the result is good, it looks easy. I have a lot of respect for the job Sporting are doing."

Rúben Amorim, Sporting coach: "Even if the tie is almost decided, we have a responsibility, and that is to fight for the victory. It's very difficult to steal the ball from their team but I hope we have more ball in this game. We have to improve without the ball and keep the result open for longer as that will motivate the players."