Manchester City vs RB Leipzig Predictions

• Man City are unbeaten in 23 games at home in this competition, winning 21 of them
• Leipzig have lost their last three visits to England, conceding 13 times
• The Citizens have won their last nine home meetings with German sides
• Mahrez has scored in each of his three meetings with Leipzig in this competition

City continue treble chase

After grinding out a win at Crystal Palace, it’s a huge few days for City across two more fronts. Before this weekend’s reunion with Vincent Kompany, the Citizens meet RB Leipzig with work to do in their Champions League last 16 clash.

City drew 1-1 in the first leg in Germany, having went into that clash under pressure. They’ve won each of their four games since returning from Leipzig, which doesn’t bode well for the Bundesliga outfit. The visitors have conceded 13 times across three defeats in their last three visits to England, so will City run riot in this clash?

Citizens have eye on Arsenal

With FA Cup action to come at the weekend, City can’t catch Arsenal in the Premier League anytime soon. However, they can match the Gunners’ exploits in Europe this week, as they’re a game away from matching Arsenal’s unbeaten streak at home in this competition. No English side can match their 24-game run set in April 2009, but City aren’t far behind.

The Citizens are unbeaten across their last 23 home matches in the Champions League, winning 21 of those games. That run involves six clashes with German sides, facing five different teams. Leipzig were among those visitors, losing 6-3 in a group-stage clash in 2021.

In fact, City have a great success rate against Bundesliga opponents. The Citizens have won each of their last nine Champions League matches against German clubs as the designated home side, scoring at least two goals in each match. The last German club to win away at City in this competition was Pep Guardiola’s Bayern side in 2013/14.

Leipzig can make their mark

The visitors are outsiders heading into this clash, but they have found the net in all but one of their last 13 games in this competition. Each of their previous meetings with City have seen both teams score, while they’ve scored in all but one of their 11 games in 2023. Back the visitors to cause problems for a Citizens’ defence which has struggled at times this year.

However, City have their own attacking threats. Erling Haaland has scored 17 goals in 11 home matches in the Champions League, making him the odds-on favourite to score anytime. However, Riyad Mahrez is a great option to score having been directly involved in 11 goals across his last 12 starts in the knockout stages of the Champions League, scoring seven. The Algerian has also netted in all three of his matches against RB Leipzig in the competition to date.

Having hit 15 goals across their last five home games in this competition, City should win this second leg with ease. Given Leipzig’s poor run of results in England, City should take this by a couple of goals.