Manchester City vs Napoli Predictions

• Manchester City have won 14 of their last 18 home Champions League games
• Napoli have lost five of their last six away Champions League matches in England
• Erling Haaland has scored eight goals in his last three games for club and country

De Bruyne out to prove Pep wrong 

Kevin De Bruyne makes a quick return to the Etihad Stadium on Thursday when his former club Manchester City host his new employers Napoli in the league phase of Champions League.

The Belgian has made a bright start to life in Serie A, although it is clear that he was unhappy about how his glittering 10-year stint at City came to an end. He will want to remind his old boss Pep Guardiola of his qualities in this clash.

Napoli have made a great start to the defence of their domestic crown with three wins out of three, including a 3-1 victory over Fiorentina on Saturday night which featured goals for De Bruyne and ex-Manchester United flop Rasmus Hojlund.

Haaland can put Hojlund in the shade 

The Dane latched onto a Leonardo Spinazzola pass and outmuscled a defender before slotting the chance carefully into the far corner. His record of five goals in six previous Champions League games is outstanding too and it would be no surprise to see him flourish away from Old Trafford.

However, Hojlund’s record and finishing prowess pales in comparison to Erling Haaland’s. The City hitman has bagged 49 goals in 48 Champions League games and, with three strikes in two previous games against Napoli, is the obvious pick to bring up his half-century on Thursday.

Haaland has scored eight goals in his last three matches for club and country and, after destroying United in the derby on Sunday, does not look like he is missing De Bruyne too much.

City set to pin Napoli back

Napoli boss Antonio Conte still has the better head-to-head record against Guardiola, but the Italians will have to be very brave and resistant to avoid defeat in Manchester. City’s high defensive line and press is likely to keep Napoli pinned back for long periods.

The question of whether Hojlund’s touch and link-up play, or ability to avoid running offside, is currently good enough to enable Napoli to spring out of defence is also pertinent. City are pretty trustworthy at home in Europe, as their record of 14 wins in their last 18 Champions League home game indicates, so can still be backed at around the 4/6 mark.

The Premier League side have scored at least three goals in 13 of those games and kept clean sheets in only two of the last 10 so a 3-1 scoreline may prove a profitable move in correct score betting.