Manchester City commence their first UCL campaign as holders on Tuesday night, with a home clash against Serbian side Red Star Belgrade.
This will be the first ever meeting between these two storied clubs, and it promises to be a hugely historical night at The Etihad.
Red Star Belgrade at Manchester City FYIs
Kickoff: Tue. Sept. 19, 8pm, Etihad Stadium, Manchester, UK
Competition: UEFA Champions League Group G
Manchester City Preview Material: Starting XI Prediction Team News
Fun Fact: the last time Red Star played an English club in Euro competition they beat Liverpool 2-0 in 2018/19.
TV/Streaming: Paramount+ (US), BBC Radio 5 Live, TNT Sports (UK), DAZN (Canada)
Transatlantic Passage: How the Premier League Redefined Soccer in America: LINK
Google Result Probability: Manchester City 92% Draw 6% Red Star Belgrade 2%
In terms of figuring out the starting lineup, there are several ways Pep Guardiola can go with this. In filling out our predicted first team sheet, we left out talented footballers and big names like Bernardo Silva, Rico Lewis, Nathan Ake, Sergio Gomez and more.
So you can just imagine who we left in. Here’s our best guess.
Manchester City Starting XI Prediction vs Red Star Belgrade
Ederson; Josko Gvardiol, Ruben Dias, Manuel Akanji, Kyle Walker; Rodri, Mateo Kovacic; Phil Foden, Julian Alvarez, Jeremy Doku; Erling Haaland
Paul M. Banks is the owner/manager of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He’s written for numerous publications, including the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. He regularly appears on NTD News and WGN News Now. Follow the website on Twitter and Instagram.