Manchester City vs Sparta Prague Predictions

• Man City have kept just one clean sheet in their last six matches.
• Sparta Prague have won just one of their last four matches
• Three of Man City’s last six games have produced over 3.5 goals
• Erling Haaland has scored 11 goals in all competitions this season

Wins keep coming for Pep Guardiola’s champions

Manchester City left it until the 95th minute to secure a 2-1 win over Wolves on Sunday and it is fair to say they have not been at their sharpest recently.

It is testament to the sky-high standards set by Pep Guardiola at City that the club have not lost any of their 12 games in all competitions this term and are being questioned.

The bottom line is City are winning games and they remain firmly in contention for the Premier League title this season.

In the Champions League, meanwhile, they were held to a 0-0 draw by Inter in their opener before smashing Slovan Bratislava 4-0 and they again look in good shape.

Defensive issues threaten to derail Citizens

But looking at City’s performances, they have been leakier at the back than normal, conceding in five of their last six matches.

They were pushed close by Fulham before the international break, winning 3-2 at the Etihad Stadium, and they had to come from behind to beat Wolves 2-1 on Sunday.

Indeed, they have conceded first against Ipswich, Brentford, Fulham and Wolves in the Premier League this season and the continued absence of midfield bedrock Rodri is clearly not helping matters.

Mateo Kovacic has taken up that position lately but is not as defensively focused as his Spanish counterpart and City’s defence is far from impenetrable right now.

Given their results this season, it would be a bold move to oppose them when they face Sparta Prague on Wednesday but there is every chance they could be breached.

Sparta Prague can approach match with minimal fear

The new format of the Champions League has likely changed the way teams approach matches and given that Sparta Prague already have four points under their belt, they could approach this as a bit of a free hit.

They stunned Salzburg 3-0 on matchday one before snatching a point against the run of play in a 1-1 draw with Salzburg at the start of October.

In that game against the Bundesliga club, they lost the shot count 26-14 and allowed Stuttgart 77 per cent of the ball.

That shows they can cause damage on the counter-attack alone and the way City play often leaves them exposed to quick breaks.

A City win and both teams to score is the way to go, while 3-1 is a decent correct score selection given three of City’s last six games have produced over 3.5 goals.

As for a goalscorer pick, Erling Haaland is yet to hit top gear in the Champions League but he netted in City’s last game in the competition against Slovan Bratislava and has ten goals in the Premier League this term so is a wise choice.